Sociodemographic and psychosocial factors in childhood as predictors of adult mortality.
Level 3 - non-randomized controlled study
Prospective longitudinal cohort study with 7-decade follow-up
PubMed 7661231 · doi:10.2105/ajph.85.9.1237
What was done
The authors analyzed prospective data from the 7-decade Terman Life Cycle Study of Children With High Ability (n = 1285) to assess whether childhood sociodemographic, psychosocial, and environmental factors predict adult longevity through 1991. Predictors examined in hazard regression models included parental socioeconomic status, childhood health, objective childhood stressors (such as parental death or divorce), and childhood personality traits.
What was found
Parental divorce during childhood predicted decreased longevity after controlling for sex. Other evaluated childhood social predictors showed no significant associations with longevity. Three childhood personality traits predicted increased longevity: higher conscientiousness, lack of cheerfulness, and permanency of mood (observed in males only). The effects of parental divorce and personality traits were largely independent and did not explain gender differences in mortality. Specific hazard ratios and numerical effect estimates were not reported in the abstract.
Why it matters
This study provides rare multi-decade prospective evidence that discrete childhood stressors and personality characteristics are independently associated with all-cause mortality risk across the human life span.
Limits
The abstract does not provide quantitative effect sizes, hazard ratios, or confidence intervals. The cohort was restricted to individuals identified as having high intellectual ability in the early 20th century, which limits generalizability to broader and modern populations.
Cited by
- supports A long-term longevity study found that conscientiousness was the primary personality predictor of longevity, while highly cheerful or unworried individuals died earlier from accidents or preventable illnesses.