Trends in Socioeconomic Inequalities in Under-Five Mortality: Evidence from Sao Paulo, Brazil, 1970-1991

In this paper, the author examines the effects of social and economic development on inequalities in under-five mortality for the state of Sao Paulo, Brazil, over a twenty-one year period during which much of the infant and child mortality transition unfolded. The author investigated whether the improvements in infant and child survival were accompanied by declining inequalities. The author focused on inequality in under-five mortality by household wealth and by mother's education and used microdata from Brazilian censuses conducted in 1970, 1980, and 1991. The author found that inequality according to household wealth underwent a clear decline over the study period. Inequality according to mother's education first declined then increased, with a net rise over the study period. When the author controlled for background demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, inequalities in under-five mortality according to household wealth remained roughly constant. On the other hand, inequality according to mother's education increased substantially.