Working Paper: NBER ID: w22497
Authors: Dora L. Costa; Heather Desomer; Eric Hanss; Christopher Roudiez; Sven E. Wilson; Noelle Yetter
Abstract: This paper overviews the research opportunities made possible by a NIA-funded program project, Early Indicators, Intergenerational Processes, and Aging. Data collection began almost three decades ago on 40,000 soldiers from the Union Army in the US Civil War. The sample contains extensive demographic, economic, and medical data from childhood to death. In recent years, a large sample of African-American soldiers and an oversampling of soldiers from major US cities have been added. Hundreds of historical maps containing public health data have been geocoded to place soldiers and their family members in a geospatial context. With newly granted funding, thousands of veterans will be linked to the demographic information available from the census and vital records of their children.
Keywords: Union Army veterans; intergenerational processes; health and aging; socioeconomic status
JEL Codes: I10; J10; N11
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Union Army veterans' experiences during the Civil War (J45) | health and mortality in later life (I12) |
| acute stress during military service (H56) | chronic health conditions (I12) |
| stress experienced during military service (H56) | increased mortality rates (I12) |
| injuries sustained during service (J28) | diminished geographic mobility (J62) |
| diminished geographic mobility (J62) | chronic respiratory diseases (I12) |
| wartime experiences (H56) | mortality rates among veterans (I12) |
| socioeconomic factors (income from pensions) (H55) | health outcomes of veterans (I12) |
| racial disparities (J15) | different health outcomes for black and white veterans (I14) |
| health outcomes of veterans (I12) | health of their children (I19) |
| linkage of veterans' data to census records (C80) | comprehensive analysis of health relationships (I11) |