To date, research on sex differentials in lifespan variation and life expectancy has mainly been conducted in Western countries and there is a dearth of data from South Korea. This study aimed to further the understanding of mortality transition and life expectancy in South Korea, and the associated trajectories of age-at-death variation, through an analysis of life disparity by gender. Using complete life tables for South Korea for 1970–2015, sex differentials (female–male differences) in life disparity and life expectancy at birth were estimated, and sex differentials in life expectancy were decomposed by age and cause of death. The results showed that sex differentials in life expectancy at birth have not reduced significantly in the last 45 years (1970: 7.1 years; 2015: 6.2 years). Life disparity has reduced more rapidly for females than males, and the difference increased from −0.1 year in 1981 to −1.6 years in 2015. Sex differentials in life expectancy and life disparity in South Korea were higher during 1970–2015 than in several Western countries with high life expectancy. The elderly age group (60 and above) contributed 50% of the total sex difference in life expectancy at birth in 1970, and this increased to 70% in 2015. The contribution of the age group 15–59 years reduced significantly over the period. Decomposition of life expectancy at birth by cause revealed that diseases of the circulatory system (2.2 years), followed by external causes (1.3 years), were the most important causes of the sex differences in life expectancy at birth in 1983, and in 2015 neoplasms (2.2 years) and external causes (1.1 years) explained half of the total sex differences. There has been a significant shift in the age-specific pattern of the contribution towards each cause of death. Overall, sex differentials in life disparity and life expectancy at birth have remained significant in South Korea in the last 45 years.

中文翻译：

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是什么导致了韩国在寿命差异和预期寿命方面的巨大性别差异？

迄今为止，关于寿命变异和预期寿命的性别差异的研究主要在西方国家进行，韩国缺乏数据。本研究旨在通过对性别差异的分析，进一步了解韩国的死亡率转变和预期寿命，以及死亡年龄变化的相关轨迹。使用韩国 1970-2015 年的完整生命表，估计了出生时寿命差异和预期寿命的性别差异（女性-男性差异），并按年龄和死因分解了预期寿命的性别差异。结果表明，在过去 45 年中，出生时预期寿命的性别差异并未显着缩小（1970 年：7.1 岁；2015 年：6.2 岁）。与男性相比，女性的生活差距缩小得更快，并且差异从 1981 年的-0.1 年增加到 2015 年的-1.6 年。1970-2015 年，韩国的预期寿命和寿命差距的性别差异高于几个预期寿命较高的西方国家。1970 年，老年人（60 岁及以上）在出生时预期寿命的总性别差异中贡献了 50%，到 2015 年增加到 70%。15-59 岁年龄组的贡献在此期间显着减少。按原因对出生时预期寿命进行分解显示，循环系统疾病（2.2 岁），其次是外部原因（1.3 岁），是 1983 年和 2015 年肿瘤的出生时预期寿命性别差异的最重要原因（2.2 岁）和外部原因（1.1 岁）解释了总性别差异的一半。对每种死因的贡献的年龄特定模式发生了重大转变。总体而言，在过去的 45 年中，韩国在生活差距和出生时预期寿命方面的性别差异仍然很大。