Open AccessRegularities in the gender gap in life expectancy at birth in European post-communist countries
Author(s) -
Tomasz Michałski,
Wioletta Szymańska
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
studia demograficzne
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2300-2549
pISSN - 0039-3134
DOI - 10.33119/sd.2020.2.1
Subject(s) - life expectancy , quarter (canadian coin) , gender gap , communism , peninsula , demographic economics , developed country , communist state , population , demography , development economics , geography , political science , sociology , economics , politics , archaeology , law
The aim of the article is to find patterns in the gender gap in life expectancy at birth in European post-communist countries. The analysis covers the years 1990–2018. Larger differences occur in the countries of the former USSR, smaller ones on the Balkan Peninsula. Belonging to the USSR (larger gap) and the Ottoman Empire (smaller gap) in the past has a great influence of the gender gap. In half of the analysed countries, the gender gap decreased. In a quarter, after an initial increase, there was also a decrease in the gender gap (some countries of the former USSR). Moreover, in a quarter of the countries, these changes were ambiguous (some countries on the Balkan Peninsula). One can see here the impact of an improving economic situation of the population. An attempt to link the gender gap and life expectancy with the ’homo-sovieticus’ requires further research.