Abstract
Social scientists have frequently sought to understand the distinct effects of age, period, and cohort, but disaggregation of the three dimensions is difficult because cohort = period − age. We argue that this technical difficulty reflects a disconnection between how the cohort effect is conceptualized and how it is modeled in the traditional age-period-cohort framework. We propose a new method, called the age-period-cohort-interaction (APC-I) model, that is qualitatively different from previous methods in that it represents Ryder’s theoretical account about the conditions under which cohort differentiation may arise. This APC-I model does not require problematic statistical assumptions and the interpretation is straightforward. It quantifies inter-cohort deviations from the age and period main effects and also permits hypothesis testing about intra-cohort life-course dynamics. We demonstrate how this new model can be used to examine age, period, and cohort patterns in women’s labor force participation.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Journal | Sociological Methods and Research |
| DOIs | |
| State | Accepted/In press - 2020 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This project has benefited from the support of the Population Research Institute, Pennsylvania State University and the Minnesota Population Center, University of Minnesota.
Keywords
- age-period-cohort model
- cohort effect
- identification problem
- interaction
- life course