Demographic trends (Birth rate, family size and births outside marriage) Flashcards
What are demographic trends?
Patterns in the changes of demographic measures such as birth rate and death rate
What is birth rate?
The number of live births per 1000 people in the population in one year
What is fertility rate?
The number of live births per 1000 women of child-bearing age in the population
What were children seen as and expected to do in the past?
They were an economic benefit. They and were expected to work from an early age and look after parents in old age
Why has family size fallen in modern industrial societies?
The birth rate and fertility rate have fallen
Why are children more of an economic cost today?
They don’t do paid work any more and need alot of support during their long periods of education
Why don’t people need children to look after them when they are old anymore?
People can use pensions and investments to support themselves. Health and social services help as well
Society has become more secular. What has this caused?
Contraception is more widely used, and women can control the number of children they have.
What restricts women’s opportunities in paid work?
Many children
What can a smaller family do more easily?
Move geographically for new job opportunities
Beanpole families exist as a result of smaller family sizes. What are they?
A family with several generations but only a small number in each generation
What was attached to ‘illegitimate’ children and their mothers in the past?
Social stigma
What has happened to the number of children born outside marriage?
It has increased
What makes up for majority of the births outside marriage?
Babies born to cohabiting parents who may well marry later
What explanations are there for children born to parents not living together (4 in 10)?
Relationships breaking down during the pregnancy
Women deciding to raise children on their own
