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The Intimate Link Between Income Levels and Life Expectancy: Global Evidence from 213 Years

Author

Listed:
  • Michael Jetter
  • Sabine Laudage
  • David Stadelmann

Abstract

Objectives What is the main driver of life expectancy across societies and over time? This study aims to document a systematic and quantitatively sizeable relationship between income levels and life expectancy. Method A panel data set of 197 countries over 213 years is analyzed with different regression methods. Robustness tests are provided. Results By itself, GDP per capita explains more than 64 percent of the variation in life expectancy. The Preston curve prevails even when accounting for country‐ and time‐fixed effects, country‐specific time trends, and alternative explanatory variables such as health‐care expenditure, malaria prevalence, or political institutions. If anything, this link has become stronger over recent decades when data quality has improved. Results from instrumental variable estimations suggest this finding to be largely unaffected by reverse causality. Quantile regression results suggest the relationship between income and life expectancy to be persistent across different levels of life expectancy. Conclusion Income matters for life expectancy. If policymakers want to prolong people's lives, economic growth appears to be the predominant medicine.

Suggested Citation

  • Michael Jetter & Sabine Laudage & David Stadelmann, 2019. "The Intimate Link Between Income Levels and Life Expectancy: Global Evidence from 213 Years," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 100(4), pages 1387-1403, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:socsci:v:100:y:2019:i:4:p:1387-1403
    DOI: 10.1111/ssqu.12638
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    Cited by:

    1. Ponthiere, Gregory & Thibault, Emmanuel, 2023. "Life Expectancy, Income and Long-Term Care: The Preston Curve Reexamined," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1335, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    2. Prados de la Escosura, Leandro, 2023. "Health, income, and the preston curve: A long view," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 48(C).
    3. Mathurin Aimé Mekam Pouatcha & Marilena Giannetti & Elton Beqiraj, 2024. "The relationship between FDI and population health in Sub-Saharan Africa: The role of per-capita income," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 44(2), pages 557-570.
    4. Michael Cauvel & Miguel Alejandro Sanchez, 2023. "Life Expectancy and the Labor Share in the U.S," Working Papers PKWP2308, Post Keynesian Economics Society (PKES).
    5. Reiner Eichenberger & Rainer Hegselmann & David Savage & David Stadelmann & Benno Torgler, 2020. "Certified Corona-Immunity as a Resource and Strategy to Cope with Pandemic Costs," CREMA Working Paper Series 2020-03, Center for Research in Economics, Management and the Arts (CREMA).
    6. Peter A.G. van Bergeijk, 2021. "Pandemic Economics," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 20401, March.
    7. Ebere Ume Kalu & Chuck Augustine Arize & Felicia Osondu Okwueze & Ndubuisi Udemezue, 2025. "Evaluating the nexus between health expenditure and health outcomes with consideration for income characteristics in SSA countries," Future Business Journal, Springer, vol. 11(1), pages 1-22, December.
    8. Andreas Kyriacou & Ronald Miranda-Lescano & Leonel Muinelo-Gallo & Oriol Roca-Sagales, 2025. "Subnational life expectancy disparities in low and middle-income countries: measurement and determinants," Health Economics Review, Springer, vol. 15(1), pages 1-19, December.
    9. Raymond Frempong & David Stadelmann & Frederik Wild, 2020. "Coronavirus-Lockdowns, Secondary Effects and Sustainable Exit-Strategies for Sub-Saharan Africa," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 40(3), pages 2586-2593.
    10. Reiner Eichenberger & Rainer Hegselmann & David A. Savage & David Stadelmann & Benno Torgler, 2020. "Certified Coronavirus Immunity as a Resource and Strategy to Cope with Pandemic Costs," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 73(3), pages 464-474, August.
    11. Rosenberg, Molly & Beidelman, Erika & Chen, Xiwei & Canning, David & Kobayashi, Lindsay & Kahn, Kathleen & Pettifor, Audrey & Kabudula, Chodziwadziwa Whiteson, 2023. "The impact of a randomized cash transfer intervention on mortality of adult household members in rural South Africa, 2011–2022," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 324(C).

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I15 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health and Economic Development
    • I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General Welfare, Well-Being
    • J11 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Demographic Trends, Macroeconomic Effects, and Forecasts
    • H51 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Government Expenditures and Health

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