Sharon N DeWitte1, Gail Hughes-Morey2, Jelena Bekvalac3, Jordan Karsten4. 1. a Department of Anthropology , University of South Carolina , Columbia , SC , USA . 2. b Health Sciences Program, School of Health Sciences, The Sage Colleges , Troy , NY , USA . 3. c Museum of London Centre for Human Bioarchaeology , London , UK , and. 4. d Department of Religious Studies and Anthropology , University of Wisconsin Oshkosh , Oshkosh , WI , USA.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Socioeconomic status is a powerful predictor of mortality in living populations, as status affects exposure or access to a variety of factors that impact health and survival, such as diet, healthcare, infectious disease and pollution. AIM: This study examines the effect of socioeconomic status on mortality and survival in London during a period spanning the early 18th through mid-19th centuries. During this period, London experienced rapid industrialization and heightened class distinctions. This study examines whether low-socioeconomic status was associated with reduced survival at a time when the distinctions between social strata were peaking. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The samples for this study are drawn from three skeletal assemblages in London that represent lower and higher social strata. The upper socioeconomic status sample (n = 394) is from Chelsea Old Church and St Bride's Fleet Street (crypt assemblage). The low socioeconomic status sample (n = 474) is from St. Bride's Lower Churchyard (also known as St Bride's Farringdon Street). The effect of status on mortality and survival is assessed using hazard analysis and Kaplan-Meier analysis. RESULTS: The results reveal elevated mortality and reduced survival for lower socioeconomic status children, but no strong effect of status on adult mortality or survival. CONCLUSION: These results might indicate strong selective mortality operating during childhood or the effects of migration in the industrial-era population of London.
BACKGROUND: Socioeconomic status is a powerful predictor of mortality in living populations, as status affects exposure or access to a variety of factors that impact health and survival, such as diet, healthcare, infectious disease and pollution. AIM: This study examines the effect of socioeconomic status on mortality and survival in London during a period spanning the early 18th through mid-19th centuries. During this period, London experienced rapid industrialization and heightened class distinctions. This study examines whether low-socioeconomic status was associated with reduced survival at a time when the distinctions between social strata were peaking. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The samples for this study are drawn from three skeletal assemblages in London that represent lower and higher social strata. The upper socioeconomic status sample (n = 394) is from Chelsea Old Church and St Bride's Fleet Street (crypt assemblage). The low socioeconomic status sample (n = 474) is from St. Bride's Lower Churchyard (also known as St Bride's Farringdon Street). The effect of status on mortality and survival is assessed using hazard analysis and Kaplan-Meier analysis. RESULTS: The results reveal elevated mortality and reduced survival for lower socioeconomic status children, but no strong effect of status on adult mortality or survival. CONCLUSION: These results might indicate strong selective mortality operating during childhood or the effects of migration in the industrial-era population of London.
Authors: Madeleine Bleasdale; Paola Ponce; Anita Radini; Andrew S Wilson; Sean Doherty; Patrick Daley; Chloe Brown; Luke Spindler; Lucy Sibun; Camilla Speller; Michelle M Alexander Journal: Archaeol Anthropol Sci Date: 2019-08-16 Impact factor: 1.989
Authors: Angela Gurr; Jaliya Kumaratilake; Alan Henry Brook; Stella Ioannou; F Donald Pate; Maciej Henneberg Journal: PLoS One Date: 2022-04-06 Impact factor: 3.240
Authors: Gary P Aronsen; Lars Fehren-Schmitz; John Krigbaum; George D Kamenov; Gerald J Conlogue; Christina Warinner; Andrew T Ozga; Krithivasan Sankaranarayanan; Anthony Griego; Daniel W DeLuca; Howard T Eckels; Romuald K Byczkiewicz; Tania Grgurich; Natalie A Pelletier; Sarah A Brownlee; Ana Marichal; Kylie Williamson; Yukiko Tonoike; Nicholas F Bellantoni Journal: PLoS One Date: 2019-09-09 Impact factor: 3.240