Theme 1 - 1.1 - Population Dynamics Flashcards
Define population explosion.
The rapid population growth of the developing world in the post-1950 period.
Define birth rate.
The number of live births per thousand population in a year.
Define death rate.
The number of deaths per thousand population in a year.
What is the rate of natural change?
The difference between the birth rate and death rate. If it is positive -> Natural increase. If it is negative -> Natural decrease.
What is natural increase?
What the birth rate is greater than the death rate, resulting in a positive rate of natural change.
What is natural decrease?
What the birth rate is smaller than the death rate, resulting in a negative rate of natural change.
What is the rate of net migration?
The difference between the rates of immigration and emigration.
What is a model of demographic transition?
A model illustrating the historical shift of birth and death rates from high to low levels in a population.
What is total fertility rate?
The average number of children a woman has during her lifetime.
What is infant mortality rate?
The number of deaths of children under one year of age per 1000 live births per year.
What is life expectancy at birth?
The average number of years a newborn infant can expect to live under current mortality levels.
What is depopulation?
A decline in the number of people in a population.
What is optimum population?
- The best balance between a population and the resources available to it.
- This is usually viewed as the population giving the highest average living standards to a country.
What is under-population?
When there are too few people in area to use the resources available effectively.
What is over-population?
When there are too many people in an area relative to the resources and the level of technology available.
What is underemployment?
A situation where people are working less than they would like to and need to in order to earn a reasonable living.
What is population policy?
Encompasses all of the measures taken by aimed at influencing population size, growth, distribution or composition.
What are pro-natalist policies?
Policies which promote larger families.
What are anti-natalist policies?
Policies which aim to reduce population growth.
What was the human population 10,000 years ago?
No greater than 5 million.
When did the human population reach 1 billion?
About 1800.
Which two countries account for 37% of the world’s population?
- China
* India
What is the world human population currently?
Over 7 billion
What is the trend with population growth?
Population growth happened at an increasing rate until about 50 years ago, after which the rate started to decrease.
How much did the world population increase by in 2012?
84.3 million
Which countries are the cause of the majority of the world’s population growth?
Developing countries
What causes rapid population growth?
Large difference between the birth rate and the death rate.
When did more more and less developed countries have their period of high population growth?
- More developed - 19th and early 20th Century.
* Less developed - Since about 1950.
When was the highest ever rate of population growth reached?
1960s
What impact is the world’s population structure having on population growth?
There are currently very many women in the child-bearing age, so the birth rate remains high (and so does population increase).
What two factors combine to determine a country’s population change?
1) Rate of natural change (BR and DR combined)
2) Net migration
Natural change is usually more significant.
What does the demographic transition model look like?
See diagram - Pg 3 of revision guide
Are any countries in stage 1 of the demographic transition model?
No, it only applies to the most remote societies on Earth.
Where can less developed countries be found on the demographic transition model?
- The poorest are in stage 2
- More socially and economically advanced are in stage 3.
- The earliest industrialised countries (e.g. South Korea) are in stage 4.
Where can more developed countries be found on the demographic transition model?
Stages 4 and 5
In which areas of the world can stage 5 of the demographic transition model be seen?
Mainly Eastern and Southern Europe
What is each stage in the demographic transition model called?
- Stage 1 - High stationary stage
- Stage 2 - Early expanding stage
- Stage 3 - Late expanding stage
- Stage 4 - Low stationary stage
- Stage 5 - Natural decrease stage
Describe stage 1 of the demographic transition model.
- Birth rate is high and stable
* Death rate is high and fluctuating (due to sporadic famine, disease, war)
Describe stage 2 of the demographic transition model.
- Death rate declines quickly
- Birth rate remains high (due to social norms remaining)
- The rate of natural increase increases to a peak at the end of this stage
Why does death rate fluctuate in stage 1 of the demographic transition model?
Due to sporadic outbreaks of famine, disease, war, etc.
Why does birth rate remain high in stage 2 of the demographic transition model?
Social norms about fertility take time to change.
Describe stage 3 of the demographic transition model.
- Death rate levels out
- Birth rate starts to decline (due to adjusted social norms)
- The rate of natural increase decreases gradually
Describe stage 4 of the demographic transition model.
- Death rate is low and constant
- Birth rate is low and fairly constant (slight fluctuations due to changing economic conditions)
- BR slightly higher than DR -> Slow rate of natural increase
Describe stage 5 of the demographic transition model.
- Death rate is low and constant
- Birth rate drops below death rate
- Slow natural decrease
How are currently developing countries undergoing population change compared to countries which have developed earlier?
- Birth rates in stages 1 and 2 were higher
- Death rate fell more steeply (stage 2)
- Some countries with larger base populations -> Impact of rapid population growth in stages 2 and 3 has been much greater
- Steeper fall in fertility in stage 3
- Weaker relationship between population change and economic development
What is the most common measure of fertility?
Birth rate (but it is not necessarily the most ACCURATE)
What is fertility?
The number of live births occurring in a population.
What is an accurate measure of fertility?
Total fertility rate - It takes into account the age and sex distribution of a population.
What is the range of total fertility rates in the world?
Lowest: 1.3
Highest: 6.0
What 4 categories affect fertility?
- Demographic
- Social / Cultural
- Economic
- Political
Define demographic.
Relating to structure of populations.
How do demographic factors influence fertility?
- Child mortality rates -> May need to have many children in order for one to survive
- Other population factors
How do social / cultural factors influence fertility?
- Tradition -> May demand many children (particularly in Africa)
- Education -> Female literacy is the key to lower fertility
- Religion -> May encourage children
How do economic factors influence fertility?
- In LEDCs -> Children are seen as economic asset
* In MEDCs -> Children are seen as a cost
How do political factors influence fertility?
• Governments may want to change population growth for economic or strategic reasons
What is the world average for life expectancy?
70 years
Where is the highest and lowest life expectancy?
Highest: North America - 79 years
Lowest: Africa - 58 years
What are the main causes of death in low-income countries?
- Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death
- But infectious diseases (e.g. HIV) combined result in more deaths
- Childbirth and pregnancy complications are also significant
What are the main causes of death in high-income countries?
- Chronic diseases (e.g. cardiovascular disease) are the leading causes of death
- Lung infection is the only leading infectious cause of death
What are the main causes of death in middle-income countries?
- Chronic diseases (e.g. cardiovascular disease) are the leading causes of death
- Some infectious diseases are also leading causes
- Road traffic accidents
What are the main differences in causes of death between MEDCs and LEDCs?
- Fewer infectious diseases in MEDCs
- Fewer problems with childbirth/pregnancy in MEDCs
- More child mortalities in LEDCs
What factors help cause the high rates of infectious disease in developing countries?
- Physical environment
- Poverty
- Poor access to healthcare
- Antibiotic resistance
- Evolving human migration patterns
- New infectious agents
What are the trends in mortality around the world?
- Generally, it is falling
* In some countries, it is rising due to HIV/AIDS
What is happening to the number of deaths caused by HIV/AIDS around the world?
Globally, the number is falling (although not in all countries).
Where is HIV most common?
Sub-Saharan Africa - 69% of cases
What are some factors which cause high rates of HIV (in Sub-Saharan Africa)?
- High levels of other sexually transmitted diseases
- Low status of women
- Sexual violence
- High mobility -> Linked to migratory labour systems
- Ineffective leadership during critical periods in the epidemic’s spread
- Lack of education
What are some of the impacts of HIV/AIDS?
- Worse labour supply -> Fewer people can work
- Higher dependency ratio
- Effect on families -> Children and the elderly forced to become carers + Many orphans
- Poverty -> Results in a cycle of poverty and HIV
How does population affect GDP per head?
GDP per head is highest when there is an optimum population size.
What are some indicators that the population is pushing the limits of the Earth’s resources?
- 1/4 of the world’s children have protein-energy malnutrition
- Long term trend for grain production per person is falling
- Water scarcity affects every continent and 4 out of every 10 people in the world
What are some indicators of population pressure (i.e. overpopulation) in the Netherlands and the UK?
- Intense competition for land
- Heavy traffic congestion
- High house prices
- Pressure on water resources
Give examples of 2 densely populated countries in Europe.
- The Netherlands
* UK
Give examples of 2 sparsely populated countries.
- Australia
* Canada
Give examples of 2 densely populated developing countries.
- China
* Bangladesh
How have Canada and Australia responded to immigrants and why?
- Historically, they welcomed immigrants -> Due to wanting to reach optimum population
- Recently, they are more selective in terms of immigration -> Due to economic uncertainty
Are Canada and Australia as underpopulated as they might seem?
No, because they have large areas of inhospitable landscape.
What is China’s current population?
Over 1.3 billion
Which country has the world’s most severe anti-natalist policy?
China - with its “one-child policy”
Describe the history of China’s population policies.
- After communist revolution in 1949 and before the 1979s, China had periods where it encouraged population growth and periods where it tried to reduce it
- One-child policy was introduced in 1979
What was the motivation for the one-child policy in China?
The imbalance between population and resources.
Where in China has the one-child policy been effective and ineffective?
- Effective in urban areas -> Due to weaker social norms for wanting a male heir
- Less effective in rural areas -> Due to stronger social norms for wanting a male heir -> Policy has been relaxed in many rural areas
What has happened to the one-child policy in China?
- It was relaxed in many rural areas, allowing 2 children
* Increasing debate about the policy recently
What were the positive and negative effects of the one-child policy in China?
POS.
• Reduced the birth rate considerably
NEG.
• Impact on sex ratio -> More men than women (32 million men than women under 20)
• Encouraged ageing population -> High dependency ratio
Was the one-child policy China’s first attempt at population control?
No, they had tried before the 1970s
What is happening to the number of countries with a pro-natalist policies?
It is growing.
What concerns might encourage a country to take up a pro-natalist policy?
- Socioeconomic implications of population ageing
- Decrease in labour supply
- Long-term prospect of population decline
Give an example of a country with a pro-natalist policy.
France
When did France begin its pro-natalist movement and what was it called?
1939 - Code de la Famille
How has France attempt to encourage population growth?
- Longer maternity and paternity leave
- Higher child benefits
- Improved tax allowances for larger families
- Preferential treatment of families in housing allocation
In general, France is trying to reduce the economic cost of having children in order to encourage parents to have children.
What is France’s total fertility rate?
2.0
Define replacement level.
- The total fertility rate required in order for a population to replace itself exactly without migration
- It is roughly 2.1 children per woman
Give some examples countries in stage 1 of the DTM.
No countries, just tribes, such as rainforest tribes.
Give some examples countries in stage 2 of the DTM.
Most Sub-Saharan countries -> Chad
Give some examples countries in stage 3 of the DTM.
Most LEDCs -> India, Brazil
Give some examples countries in stage 4 of the DTM.
Most MEDCs -> UK, USA
Give some examples countries in stage 5 of the DTM.
Germany, Italy, Japan
What are some reasons for recent rapid population growth?
- Improved medical care
- Improved sanitation and water supply
- Improvements in food production
- Improved transport -> Moving doctors, etc.
