3302.0.55.001 - Life Tables, States, Territories and Australia, 2013-2015  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 27/10/2016   
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GLOSSARY

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander death

The ABS Death Registrations collection identifies a death as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander where the deceased is recorded as Aboriginal, Torres Strait islander, or both on the Death Registration Form (DRF). The Indigenous status is also derived from the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD) for South Australia, Western Australia, Tasmania, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory. For 2015 data, the Queensland Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages also used MCCD information for the first time to derive Indigenous status. This resulted in a noticeable decrease in the number of deaths for which the Indigenous status was 'not stated' and an increase in the number of deaths identified as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander in Queensland. For New South Wales and Victoria, the Indigenous status of the deceased is derived from the DRF only. If the Indigenous status reported in the DRF does not agree with that in the MCCD, an identification from either source that the deceased was an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander person is given preference over non-Indigenous.

Age-specific death rate (ASDR)

Age-specific death rates in this release, are the number of deaths (occurred) during the calendar year, at a specified age, per 1,000 of the estimated resident population of the same age at the mid-point of the year (30 June). Pro rata adjustment is made in respect of deaths for which the age of the deceased is not given.

Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS)

The ASGS defines all the regions for which the ABS releases statistics within the one framework and is used by the ABS for the collection and dissemination of geographically classified statistics from 1 July 2011. It is the current framework for understanding and interpreting the geographical context of statistics released by the ABS.

For more information, please refer to Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS): Volume 1 - Main Structure and Greater Capital City Statistical Areas, July 2011 (cat. no. 1270.0.55.001).

Birth

The delivery of a child, irrespective of the duration of pregnancy, who, after being born, breathes or shows any evidence of life such as a heartbeat.

Crude death rate (CDR)

The crude death rate in this release, is the number of deaths (occurred) during the calendar year per 1,000 estimated resident population at 30 June.

Death

Death is the permanent disappearance of all evidence of life after birth has taken place. The definition excludes all deaths prior to live birth. For the purposes of the ABS Death Registrations collection, a death refers to any death which occurs in, or en route to Australia and is registered with a state or territory Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages.

Estimated resident population (ERP)

The official measure of the population of Australia is based on the concept of usual residence. It refers to all people, regardless of nationality, citizenship or legal status, who usually live in Australia, with the exception of foreign diplomatic personnel and their families. It includes usual residents who are overseas for less than 12 months over a 16 month period. It excludes overseas visitors who are in Australia for less than 12 months over a 16 month period.

Life expectancy

Life expectancy refers to the average number of additional years a person of a given age and sex might expect to live if the age-specific death rates of the given period continued throughout his/her lifetime.

Life table

A life table is a tabular, numerical representation of mortality and survivorship of a cohort of births at each age of life. The conventional life table is based on the assumption that as the cohort passes through life it experiences mortality at each age in accordance with a predetermined pattern of mortality rates which do not change from year to year. The life table thus constitutes a hypothetical model of mortality, and even though it is usually based upon death rates from a real population during a particular period of time, it does not describe the real mortality which characterises a cohort as it ages.

Due to differences in mortality patterns between males and females at different ages, life tables are generally constructed separately for each sex.

Life table functions

The mortality rate (qx), is the main function of the life table, all other functions are derived from it. The life tables presented in this release contain four columns of interrelated information. These functions are:

    • lx - the number of persons surviving to exact age x;
    • qx - the proportion of persons dying between exact age x and exact age x+1. It is the mortality rate, from which other functions of the life table are derived;
    • Lx - the number of person years lived within the age interval x to x+1; and
    • ex - life expectancy at exact age x.

Live birth

See Birth.

Mortality

See Death.

Statistical Area Level 4 (SA4)

An area defined in the Australian Statistical Geography Standard and designed for the output of labour force data and to reflect labour markets. In rural areas, SA4s generally represent aggregations of multiple small labour markets with socioeconomic connections or similar industry characteristics. Large regional city labour markets are generally defined by a single SA4. Within major metropolitan labour markets SA4s represent sub-labour markets. SA4s are built from whole SA3s. They generally have a population over 100,000 people to enable accurate labour force survey data to be generated. There are 106 SA4s and they cover the whole of Australia without gaps or overlaps.

For more information, please refer to Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS): Volume 1 - Main Structure and Greater Capital City Statistical Areas (cat. no. 1270.0.55.001).

Year of occurrence

The year the death occurred.