01 TablasdeMortalidad Dickson Cap3.2
01 TablasdeMortalidad Dickson Cap3.2
3.1 Summary
In this chapter we define a life table. For a life table tabulated at integer ages
only, we show, using fractional age assumptions, how to calculate survival
probabilities for all ages and durations.
We discuss some features of national life tables from Australia, England &
Wales and the United States.
We then consider life tables appropriate to individuals who have purchased
particular types of life insurance policy and discuss why the survival probabil-
ities differ from those in the corresponding national life table. We consider the
effect of ‘selection’ of lives for insurance policies, for example through medical
underwriting. We define a select survival model and we derive some formulae
for such a model.
41
42 Life tables and selection
so that
E[Lt ] = lx t px = lx+t .
We always use the table in the form ly /lx which is why the radix of the table is
arbitrary – it would make no difference to the survival model if all the lx values
were multiplied by 100, for example.
From (3.1) we can use the lx function to calculate survival probabilities. We
can also calculate mortality probabilities. For example,
In principle, a life table is defined for all x from the initial age, x0 , to the limiting
age, ω. In practice, it is very common for a life table to be presented, and in
some cases even defined, at integer ages only. In this form, the life table is a
useful way of summarizing a lifetime distribution since, with a single column
of numbers, it allows us to calculate probabilities of surviving or dying over
integer numbers of years starting from an integer age.
It is usual for a life table, tabulated at integer ages, to show the values of dx ,
where
dx = lx − lx+1 , (3.4)
x lx dx
30 10 000.00 34.78
31 9 965.22 38.10
32 9 927.12 41.76
33 9 885.35 45.81
34 9 839.55 50.26
35 9 789.29 55.17
36 9 734.12 60.56
37 9 673.56 66.49
38 9 607.07 72.99
39 9 534.08 80.11
dx = lx qx . (3.5)
Example 3.1 Table 3.1 gives an extract from a life table. Calculate
(a) l40 ,
(b) 10 p30 ,
(c) q35 ,
(d) 5 q30 , and
(e) the probability that a life currently aged exactly 30 dies between ages 35
and 36.
l40 9 453.97
10 p30 = = = 0.94540.
l30 10 000
d35 55.17
q35 = = = 0.00564.
l35 9 789.29
44 Life tables and selection
s qx = sqx . (3.6)
UDD2
Recall from Chapter 2 that Kx is the integer part of Tx , and define a new
random variable Rx such that
Tx = Kx + Rx .