Volume 24 - Article 2 | Pages 45–78
Out of Sync? Demographic and other social science research on health conditions in developing countries
| Date received: | 24 Jan 2009 |
| Date published: | 18 Jan 2011 |
| Word count: | 5054 |
| Keywords: | developing countries, disability-adjusted life year (DALY), health, HIV/AIDS, injuries, noncommunicable diseases, research priorities |
| DOI: | 10.4054/DemRes.2011.24.2 |
Abstract
In this paper, we present a framework for considering whether the marginal social benefits of demographic and social science research on various health conditions in developing countries are likely to be relatively high. Based on this framework, we argue that the relative current and future predicted prevalence of burdens of different health/disease conditions, as measured by disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), provide a fairly accurate reflection of some important factors related to the relative marginal social benefits of demographic and social science research on different health conditions. World Health Organization (WHO) DALYs projections for 2005-30 are compared with (a) demographic and other social science studies on health in developing countries during 1990-2005, and (b) presentations made at the Population Association of America annual meetings during the same time period. These comparisons suggest that recent demographic and social science research on health in developing countries has focused too much on HIV/AIDS, and too little on non-communicable diseases.
Author's Affiliation
Jere Behrman - University of Pennsylvania, United States of America
Julia Behrman - Northwestern University, United States of America
Nykia M. Perez - University of Pennsylvania, United States of America
Other articles by the same author/authors in Demographic Research
»
Women's employment and fertility in a global perspective (1960–2015)
Volume 43 - Article 25
»
An exploration of differences in ideal family size between Muslim and non-Muslim women in France
Volume 41 - Article 22
»
The relationship between women's paid employment and women's stated son preference in India
Volume 36 - Article 52
»
Intergenerational Transfers in the Era of HIV/AIDS: Evidence from Rural Malawi
Volume 27 - Article 27
»
A summary of Special Collection 1: Social Interactions and HIV/AIDS in Rural Africa
Volume 9 - Article 12
»
Attrition in Longitudinal Household Survey Data: Some Tests for Three Developing-Country Samples
Volume 5 - Article 4
»
Empirical Assessments of Social Networks, Fertility and Family Planning Programs: Nonlinearities and their Implications
Volume 3 - Article 7
»
Introduction to "Research on Demographic Aspects of HIV/AIDS in Rural Africa"
Special Collection 1 - Article 1
Most recent similar articles in Demographic Research
»
Health consequences of child labour in Bangladesh
Volume 30 - Article 4 | Keywords: health, injuries
»
The more you learn the less you know? Interpretive ambiguity across three modes of qualitative data
Volume 28 - Article 33 | Keywords: HIV/AIDS, research priorities
»
Sources of error and bias in methods of fertility estimation contingent on the P/F ratio in a time of declining fertility and rising mortality
Volume 19 - Article 46 | Keywords: developing countries, HIV/AIDS
»
A test of the predictive validity of relative versus absolute income for self-reported health and well-being in the United States
Volume 48 - Article 26 | Keywords: health
»
Aligning household decision-making with work and education: A comparative analysis of women’s empowerment
Volume 48 - Article 19 | Keywords: developing countries
Articles
Citations
Cited References: 16
»View the references of this article
Download to Citation Manager
Similar Articles
PubMed
Google Scholar