| Abstract: | "There exist a number of approaches to analysis of the components of difference between demographic rates using standardization techniques. A generalization of some of these methods, for an arbitrary number of components and an arbitrary analytical function of them, is shown to be the theoretically best choice when the analytical function is linear in each of the components and when linear change is assumed for each of the components. Also, a very close approximation to an exact decomposition for the most general case can be obtained when dealing with change over time and time series data are available." |
