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Spatial modelling of rural infant mortality and occupation in nineteenth-century Britain

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Spatial modelling of rural infant mortality and occupation in nineteenth-century Britain. / Atkinson, Paul David; Francis, Brian Joseph; Gregory, Ian Norman et al.
In: Demographic Research, Vol. 36, 44, 26.04.2017, p. 1337-1360.

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@article{84a0b1209de244a1aacc9493076526d3,
title = "Spatial modelling of rural infant mortality and occupation in nineteenth-century Britain",
abstract = "BACKGROUNDInfant mortality in nineteenth-century rural places has been largely neglected: to study it offers new insight into rural demography.OBJECTIVEThis study examines infant mortality, and census occupations, between 1851 and 1911 across all the rural Registration Districts (RDs) of England and Wales.METHODSThe decadal 1850s-1900s RD-level demographic data in the GB Historical GIS (GBHGIS) is analysed using latent trajectory analysis to identify clusters of RDs whose infant mortality rate (IMR) trajectories were most similar: these are mapped in ArcGIS. The recently published Integrated Census Microdata (I-CeM) resource is then used to study relationships between IMR and Census reported occupation. Geographically Weighted Regression is employed to explore spatial variation in the coefficient with which occupation affected IMR.RESULTSThe study describes a previously unreported pattern of mortality variation, identifying seven groups of RDs with distinctive trajectories of infant mortality. A spatially varying link between IMR and female occupation rates in agriculture is noted.CONCLUSIONSSpatial variation in rural social structures had demographic consequences: the decline in female agricultural occupation may have removed a source of harm to infant lives in the arable economy of the south and east, but simultaneously a source of benefit in the upland, pastoral north and west.CONTRIBUTIONFindings about the costs and benefits of female agricultural employment can help explain the different trajectories of infant mortality in different regions, suggesting that female occupation and the details of what work women did could be a strong influence, positive or negative, on infant mortality. ",
keywords = "infant mortality, rural history, female occupation, agriculture, England and Wales, nineteenth century , demographic history, gender, family",
author = "Atkinson, {Paul David} and Francis, {Brian Joseph} and Gregory, {Ian Norman} and Catherine Porter",
year = "2017",
month = apr,
day = "26",
language = "English",
volume = "36",
pages = "1337--1360",
journal = "Demographic Research",
issn = "1435-9871",
publisher = "Max-Planck Institute for Demographic Research/Max-Planck-institut fur Demografische Forschung",

}

RIS

TY - JOUR

T1 - Spatial modelling of rural infant mortality and occupation in nineteenth-century Britain

AU - Atkinson, Paul David

AU - Francis, Brian Joseph

AU - Gregory, Ian Norman

AU - Porter, Catherine

PY - 2017/4/26

Y1 - 2017/4/26

N2 - BACKGROUNDInfant mortality in nineteenth-century rural places has been largely neglected: to study it offers new insight into rural demography.OBJECTIVEThis study examines infant mortality, and census occupations, between 1851 and 1911 across all the rural Registration Districts (RDs) of England and Wales.METHODSThe decadal 1850s-1900s RD-level demographic data in the GB Historical GIS (GBHGIS) is analysed using latent trajectory analysis to identify clusters of RDs whose infant mortality rate (IMR) trajectories were most similar: these are mapped in ArcGIS. The recently published Integrated Census Microdata (I-CeM) resource is then used to study relationships between IMR and Census reported occupation. Geographically Weighted Regression is employed to explore spatial variation in the coefficient with which occupation affected IMR.RESULTSThe study describes a previously unreported pattern of mortality variation, identifying seven groups of RDs with distinctive trajectories of infant mortality. A spatially varying link between IMR and female occupation rates in agriculture is noted.CONCLUSIONSSpatial variation in rural social structures had demographic consequences: the decline in female agricultural occupation may have removed a source of harm to infant lives in the arable economy of the south and east, but simultaneously a source of benefit in the upland, pastoral north and west.CONTRIBUTIONFindings about the costs and benefits of female agricultural employment can help explain the different trajectories of infant mortality in different regions, suggesting that female occupation and the details of what work women did could be a strong influence, positive or negative, on infant mortality.

AB - BACKGROUNDInfant mortality in nineteenth-century rural places has been largely neglected: to study it offers new insight into rural demography.OBJECTIVEThis study examines infant mortality, and census occupations, between 1851 and 1911 across all the rural Registration Districts (RDs) of England and Wales.METHODSThe decadal 1850s-1900s RD-level demographic data in the GB Historical GIS (GBHGIS) is analysed using latent trajectory analysis to identify clusters of RDs whose infant mortality rate (IMR) trajectories were most similar: these are mapped in ArcGIS. The recently published Integrated Census Microdata (I-CeM) resource is then used to study relationships between IMR and Census reported occupation. Geographically Weighted Regression is employed to explore spatial variation in the coefficient with which occupation affected IMR.RESULTSThe study describes a previously unreported pattern of mortality variation, identifying seven groups of RDs with distinctive trajectories of infant mortality. A spatially varying link between IMR and female occupation rates in agriculture is noted.CONCLUSIONSSpatial variation in rural social structures had demographic consequences: the decline in female agricultural occupation may have removed a source of harm to infant lives in the arable economy of the south and east, but simultaneously a source of benefit in the upland, pastoral north and west.CONTRIBUTIONFindings about the costs and benefits of female agricultural employment can help explain the different trajectories of infant mortality in different regions, suggesting that female occupation and the details of what work women did could be a strong influence, positive or negative, on infant mortality.

KW - infant mortality

KW - rural history

KW - female occupation

KW - agriculture

KW - England and Wales

KW - nineteenth century

KW - demographic history

KW - gender

KW - family

M3 - Journal article

VL - 36

SP - 1337

EP - 1360

JO - Demographic Research

JF - Demographic Research

SN - 1435-9871

M1 - 44

ER -