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The Statistical Analysis of Event Histories in Longitudinal Studies of Aging

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 November 2010

John P. Hirdes  and
K. Stephen Brown
John P. Hirdes
Affiliation:
University of Waterloo and Freeport Hospital
K. Stephen Brown
Affiliation:
University of Waterloo
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Abstract

Data from longitudinal studies have a number of advantages for gerontological research, but the effects of attrition and the increased complexity of data structures with multiple observations may pose some problems for statistical analysis. Proportional hazards models allow for the examination of event histories using all observations of a dependent variable, and these models can incorporate time-dependent covariates to increase their explanatory power. The assumptions and applications of event history analysis using proportional hazards models are described, and the analysis of mortality data from the Ontario Longitudinal Study of Aging provides a relevant example. Extensions of proportional hazards models and commercially available software are also discussed.

Résumé

Les données tirées d'études longitudinales possèdent un certain nombre d'avantages pour les recherches en gérontologie; toutefois, les effets de l'attrition et la complexité accrue des structures de données avec de multiples observations peuvent poser certains problèmes pour les analyses statistiques. Les modèles de risques proportionnels permettent un examen de l'histoire d'un événement par l'utilisation de toutes les observations d'une variable dépendante. Ces modèles peuvent comprendre des covariables afin d'accroître leur capacité d'explication. Des hypothèses et des applications de l'analyse de l'histoire d'un événement utilisant des risques proportionnels sont décrits. L'analyse des données sur la mortalité tirées de l'étude longitudinale du vieillissement menée en Ontario en constitue un exemple pertinent. Les extensions du modèle de risques proportionnels et les logiciels disponibles sur le marché sont également traités.

Keywords

Event HistoryLongitudinalStatistical ModelsMortalityAnalyse des événementslongitudinalemodèles statistiquesmortalité
Type
Articles
Information
Canadian Journal on Aging / La Revue canadienne du vieillissement , Volume 13 , Issue 3 , Automne/Fall 1994 , pp. 332 - 352
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Association on Gerontology 1994

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