Volume 41 - Article 42 | Pages 1205–1234  

APC curvature plots: Displaying nonlinear age-period-cohort patterns on Lexis plots

By Enrique Acosta, Alyson van Raalte

This article is part of the Special Collection 29 „Data Visualization“

Abstract

Background: The analysis of age-period-cohort (APC) patterns of vital rate changes over time is of great importance for understanding demographic phenomena. Given the limitations of statistical modeling, the use of graphical analyses is often regarded as a more transparent approach to identifying APC effects.

Objective: The current paper proposes a Lexis plot for the depiction and analysis of curvature, which is defined as the estimable nonlinear component of age, period, and cohort effects.

Methods: In a single visualization, we combine the dynamics of the location, the magnitude, and the spread of nonlinear temporal effects for multiple populations or demographic phenomena. Using vital rates, we provide three examples in which we analyze the APC nonlinear effects of different demographic phenomena.

Results: We construct several APC curvature plots to display the following patterns: the modal cohort of excess mortality from drug-related causes by racial/ethnic group in the United States among the baby boomer generations; the modal age of excess mortality in young adults; and the modal age of fertility over cohorts and across populations.

Contribution: The use of the APC curvature plot offers more flexibility when analyzing nonlinear APC effects than the use of mathematical models or other Lexis plots.

Author’s Affiliation

• Enrique Acosta - Max-Planck-Institut für Demografische Forschung, Germany EMAIL
• Alyson van Raalte - Max-Planck-Institut für Demografische Forschung, Germany EMAIL

Other articles by the same author/authors in Demographic Research

Subnational contribution to life expectancy and life span variation changes: Evidence from the United States
Volume 50 - Article 22

COVID-19 fatality in Germany: Demographic determinants of variation in case-fatality rates across and within German federal states during the first and second waves
Volume 45 - Article 45

Is the age difference between partners related to women's earnings?
Volume 41 - Article 15

The role of smoking on mortality compression: An analysis of Finnish occupational social classes, 1971-2010
Volume 32 - Article 20

Most recent similar articles in Demographic Research

An age–period–cohort approach to disentangling generational differences in family values and religious beliefs: Understanding the modern Australian family today
Volume 45 - Article 20    | Keywords: age-period-cohort effects, Australia, family, generations, HILDA, religious beliefs, social change, values

Editorial to the Special Issue on Demographic Data Visualization: Getting the point across – Reaching the potential of demographic data visualization
Volume 44 - Article 36    | Keywords: data visualization, demographic data, demography

The centered ternary balance scheme: A technique to visualize surfaces of unbalanced three-part compositions
Volume 44 - Article 19    | Keywords: compositional data, data visualization, multidimensional color scales

A visual tool to explore the composition of international migration flows in the EU countries, 1998–2015
Volume 42 - Article 27    | Keywords: citizenship, compositional data, data visualization, European Union, international migration, shiny application, ternary plots

Lexis fields
Volume 42 - Article 24    | Keywords: data visualization, fertility, Lexis diagram, mortality