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Death from non-war violence: an international comparison
Social Science & Medicine (1982)
|January 1, 1984
Summary
Violence, including accidents, suicide, and homicide, shows significant variations across populations, genders, and age groups. Mortality patterns from violence remained consistent over time and across different countries.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Epidemiology
- Sociology
Background:
- Violence, encompassing accidents, suicide, and homicide, represents a significant cause of mortality globally.
- Understanding demographic and societal factors influencing violent death patterns is crucial for public health interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze patterns of death from violence (accidents, suicide, homicide) in individuals aged 1-64 across 49 populations between 1950-1978.
- To investigate variations in violent death rates by gender, age, and population, and their consistency over time.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of death rates from combined violent causes in populations with complete death registration.
- Comparison of mortality levels and rank order across populations and over time.
Main Results:
- Significant differences in violent death rates were observed between genders and age groups within populations, and between different populations.
- Mortality patterns from violence demonstrated high consistency over time, both in absolute levels and relative rankings among populations.
- No significant association was found between violent death rates and mortality from other causes.
Conclusions:
- Violent death patterns are influenced by a complex interplay of factors including physiology, chance, access to means, social roles, disorganization, and cultural aspects.
- While methodological approaches reduced some interpretive challenges, cross-population comparisons of violent death rates still present difficulties.