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Reporting Errors in Siblings’ Survival Histories and Their Impact on Adult Mortality Estimates: Results From a Record Linkage Study in Senegal

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  • Stéphane Helleringer
  • Gilles Pison
  • Almamy Kanté
  • Géraldine Duthé
  • Armelle Andro

Abstract

Estimates of adult mortality in countries with limited vital registration (e.g., sub-Saharan Africa) are often derived from information about the survival of a respondent’s siblings. We evaluated the completeness and accuracy of such data through a record linkage study conducted in Bandafassi, located in southeastern Senegal. We linked at the individual level retrospective siblings’ survival histories (SSH) reported by female respondents (n=268) to prospective mortality data and genealogies collected through a health and demographic surveillance system (HDSS). Respondents often reported inaccurate lists of siblings. Additions to these lists were uncommon, but omissions were frequent: respondents omitted 3.8 % of their live sisters, 9.1 % of their deceased sisters, and 16.6 % of their sisters who had migrated out of the DSS area. Respondents underestimated the age at death of the siblings they reported during the interview, particularly among siblings who had died at older ages (≥45 years). Restricting SSH data to person-years and events having occurred during a recent reference period reduced list errors but not age and date errors. Overall, SSH data led to a 20 % underestimate of 45 q 15 relative to HDSS data. Our study suggests new quality improvement strategies for SSH data and demonstrates the potential use of HDSS data for the validation of “unconventional” demographic techniques. Copyright Population Association of America 2014

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  • Stéphane Helleringer & Gilles Pison & Almamy Kanté & Géraldine Duthé & Armelle Andro, 2014. "Reporting Errors in Siblings’ Survival Histories and Their Impact on Adult Mortality Estimates: Results From a Record Linkage Study in Senegal," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 51(2), pages 387-411, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:demogr:v:51:y:2014:i:2:p:387-411
    DOI: 10.1007/s13524-013-0268-3
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    Cited by:

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    2. Yoonjoung Choi & Qingfeng Li & Blake Zachary, 2018. "Measuring fertility through mobile‒phone based household surveys: Methods, data quality, and lessons learned from PMA2020 surveys," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 38(55), pages 1663-1698.
    3. Stephane Helleringer & Daniel Arhinful & Benjamin Abuaku & Michael Humes & Emily Wilson & Andrew Marsh & Adrienne Clermont & Robert E Black & Jennifer Bryce & Agbessi Amouzou, 2018. "Using community-based reporting of vital events to monitor child mortality: Lessons from rural Ghana," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(1), pages 1-18, January.
    4. Finnegan, Amy, 2020. "Effects of a sister's death in childbirth on reproductive behaviors: Difference-in-difference analyses using sisterhood mortality data from Indonesia," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 250(C).
    5. Stéphane Helleringer & Li Liu & Yue Chu & Amabelia Rodrigues & Ane Barent Fisker, 2020. "Biases in Survey Estimates of Neonatal Mortality: Results From a Validation Study in Urban Areas of Guinea-Bissau," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 57(5), pages 1705-1726, October.
    6. Emily Smith-Greenaway & Christie Sennott, 2016. "Death and Desirability: Retrospective Reporting of Unintended Pregnancy After a Child’s Death," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 53(3), pages 805-834, June.
    7. Helleringer, Stephane & Liu, Li & Chu, Yue & Rodrigues, Amabelia & Fisker, Ane Baerent, 2020. "Biases in Survey Estimates of Neonatal Mortality: Results from a Validation Study in Urban Areas of Guinea-Bissau," SocArXiv qx2kn, Center for Open Science.

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