Final Exam ( Module 14)

Question 1

What are the three factors that must be considered when examining population change in a
community?

Answer 1

1. Fertility (births)
2. Mortality (deaths)
3. Migration

Question 2

What are the two factors that must be considered when examining population change of the earth?

Answer 2

1. Fertility (births)

2. Mortality (deaths)

Question 3

What is the demographic transition theory and its stages?

Answer 3

Democratic transition theory links population patterns to a society’s level of technological development.

Stage one (preindustrial, agrarian)
- High birth rates due to economic value of children and lack of birth control.

Stage two (early industrial)
- High birth rate and lowered death rate boosts population growth.

Stage three (mature industrial)
- Population surge drops as affluence transforms children into economic liability.

Stage four (postindustrial)
- Economic realities force drop in birth rates.

Question 4

What is the Malthusian perspective on population growth?

Answer 4

According to Thomas Malthus (1766 – 1834),
a species will continue to grow in population
until it exhausts the available food supply.

If left unchecked, the human population will
inevitably exceed the available food supply.

Question 5

Where is almost all of today’s population growth occurring?

Answer 5

Almost all population growth over
the next 20 years will occur in
those nations least able to afford
this growth

Question 6

What does population growth look like in Europe and the United States?

Answer 6

Ghana: 4.6 children per woman

• Women play a traditional role with low status
• Children are an economic resource
• Children are a couples’ old-age insurance

Europe: 1.4 children per woman
- Women’s social status similar to that of men
- Government support (disability, health
insurance, pensions) in old age

Question 7

What are “population pyramids” and what do their shapes mean?

Answer 7

A graphic representation of the
distribution of a population by sex and
age.

Question 8

What are the three models of the city and to what types of cities do they apply?

Answer 8

1. Concentric Zone Model
2. Sector Model
3. Multiple Nuclei Model

Question 9

How did George Simmel view city life?

Answer 9

Differences between country and city people are the result of their surrounding environments.

Due to the hustle and bustle of urban life, urban residents avoid emotional involvement with each other and try to ignore events taking place around them.

But: Urban living can be liberating - people have
opportunities for individualism and autonomy.

Question 10

How has movement to the suburbs impacted cities?

Answer 10

Since World War II, the U.S. population has
shifted as people moved to the suburbs.

Suburbanites rely on urban centers for employment but pay property taxes to suburban governments and school districts.

This has affected the revenue available for cities