Topic 4 - Demography

Question 1

Explain how the birth rate affects population size

Answer 1

Birth rate is the number of live births per thousand of the population per year.
The proportion of women who are of childbearing age and how fertile they are determines the birth rate
Total Fertility Rate:
–1964 = 2.95 children
–2001 = 1.63 children
Decrease in TFR shows:
-more women remaining childless than in past
- women postponing having children: average age for giving birth now is 30. Older women may be less fertile + s produce fewer children

However, birth rate may increase in future, due to increase in immigration, as mother from outside UK tend to have higher fertility rate than those born in the UK.

Question 2

Explain how changes in women’s position during 20th century is a reason for the decline in birth rate

Answer 2

Position of women changed in 20th century:
–more women in paid employment due to laws outlawing unequal pay and sex discrimination
–access to abortion + reliable contraception, giving women more control over their fertility
Harper - Education of women most important reason fall in birth + fertility rate. Educated women more likely to use family planning + see other possibilities in life other than traditional role of housewife and mother. Delay childbearing to pursue career.
- 1 in 5 women aged 45 childless - double the number of 25 yrs prior
-Harper - once pattern of low fertility lasts for more than 1 generation, likely to become norm in a society

Question 3

Explain how the decline in infant mortality rate is a reason for the decline in birth rate

Answer 3

Infant mortality rate measures the number of infants who die before their first birthday, per thousand babies born alive, per year.
Harper- fall in infant mortality rate = fall in birth rate because if many infants die, parents have more children to replace the children they have lost, increasing birth rate. But, if infants survive = parents have fewer children
–1950s - medical factors significant factor = fall in IMR:
–mass immunisation against whooping cough and measles
–use of antibiotics to fight infect
–Resultantly, 1950 = IMR fallen to 30 + 2012 = 4

A03:
Brass + Kabir argue fall in birth rate not bc of fall in IMR, as trend of smaller families didn’t begin in rural areas, where IMR first began to fall, but rather in urban areas, where IMR remained high

Question 4

Explain how the change in children’s position is a reason for the decline in birth rate

Answer 4

Children were economic assets, as they could be sent out to work to earn an income at an early age but 19th-century children became economic liabilities. Due to:

           - -Laws banning child labour and introducing compulsory schooling which meant children remained economically dependent on parents for longer
           - -changing norms about what children have a right to expect from their parents in material terms means cost of raising children increased - Result of financial pressures, parents may feel less able to have lots of children - reducing birth rate.

Also could be due to society becoming more child-centred so families focus more on the ‘quality’ of their children’s lives over the ‘quantity’ of children they have

Question 5

What are the consequences of the fall in birth rate?

Answer 5

• More dual-earner couples, as women are more likely to be free to go out to work
• Earnings, savings and taxes of working population must support dependent population. Children make up large part of dependent population, so fall in birth rate reduces ‘burden of dependency’ on working population
  - -However, in long term, fewer babies being born means there will be fewer young adults and a smaller working population and so burden of dependency may increase again