MT7 - Demography

Question 1

Reasons for the decline in birth-rate

Answer 1

Child centeredness – ‘quality not quantity’ so families have fewer children, but give them more attention and resources

Increased career opportunities for women/impact of feminism – caused by the move to the tertiary/service industry so they now want to work rather than get married and have children.

Technological/medical advances - invention of reliable contraception – allows women to control how many children they have.

Question 2

Consequence of the decline in birth-rate

Answer 2

Smaller families/fewer children in society: children will become nore isolated and lonely but can aslo lead being more valued (child centreness)

Dual worker families: women are freer to work - less children + changes in social attitudes)

Question 3

Reasons for the decline in death rate/ageing population

Answer 3

1. 1. Medical improvements
      Higher standards of medical care since the 1950s (antibiotics, immunisation, blood/organ transfusion) and creation of the nhs (in 1948)
2. Changes in attitudes Harper argues there is now a greater awareness of the dangers of smoking and unhealthy diet because of government campaigns (e.g. change4life) and new laws (banning smoking in public places and ban on cigarette advertising)

Question 4

Consequence of the decline in death rate/ageing population

Answer 4

1. increase in the number of people living alone - especially elderly women (as women live longer than men). this can cause social isolation for them.

2, increased burden on sandwich generation - burden tends to fall on women (social expectation so women give up careers)

3. The elderly are a source of help for their adult children

Question 5

Reasons for migration

Answer 5

Pull factors - things that make moving to a new place worth doing e.g. employment opportunities and high living standards or the wish to join your family members)
Example: Windrush generation: the uk had a shortage of workers (WWII) so gov invited workers

Push factors - things that make a person’s place of origin not a good place to live e.g. low living standards, environmental factors (natural disasters)
Example: anti-semitism (discrimination against jewish people) in europe 1900 – 1945

Question 6

Social policies + Migration

Answer 6

Assimilation: policy that encouraged immigrants to adapt to the norms and values of their host society (adapting a fully british way of life) e.g. Bussing out
C: implying their own culture is inferior

Multiculturalism: Accepting aspects of other cultures
Included diversifying the curriculum in the UK
C: Multiculturalism only really accepts shallow diversity such as food (tikka masala and chips is now said to be britain’s national dish)
C: Castles says that this marks migrants as the other – a group different, and inferior, to the majority that is easily scapegoated