Adult mortality and proportions orphaned in Austria in 1991

"At the Austrian micro-census taken in June 1991, a question was inserted on survival of parents and grandparents (on both sides), with the object of investigating family networks.... By comparing the census information on survival of parents and the corresponding direct measures of mortality, we have an opportunity to assess the validity of techniques which are commonly used in countries with defective vital registration. We shall consider here female adult mortality and proportions of persons whose mothers have died (maternal orphanhood).... This method, which hinges on the reporting of a single event that is no doubt remembered well, proves a good substitute for direct mortality measures, despite a slight underestimation. It describes the performance of cohorts, some of which are relatively old, but the results can be translated into the recent period."