Final Exam Flashcards
(32 cards)
Name and describe the five demographic stages.
1- High BR and high DR
2- High BR and falling DR
3- Falling BR and falling DR (population growth slows)
4- Low BR and low DR (population is balanced)
5- BR lower than DR
When did the U.S. (and Europe) enter each stage? Give an approximate time period. (e.g. late nineteenth century, 1990s , with the Great Recession in 2008 etc).
1- Pre-modern times
2- 1850s
3- Early 20th century
4- 1960s
5- 2008
Looking at the world today which countries are in stage 3 (with populations still growing fact). Which countries today are in stage 4 and which countries are in stage 5?
Stage 3: Haiti, Pakistan, many countries of Africa, many countries of the Middle East
Stage 4: India, Indonesia
Stage 5: All developed countries (Japan, US, Italy)
What is meant by the “Biological Old Regime”?
High birth rates and high death rates
Although modern medicine contributed to the end of the Biological Old Regime it could not be the main or only cause. Explain why.
Death rate was already falling before medicine
Urbanization
Sanitation
Modern education system
Globalization (Epidemiological, Agricultural, Technological)
What changes that occurred in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries led to the population explosion? Name five.
1- Post-War baby boom in Europe, North America, and Japan.
2- Expansion of the population in the less developing world or third world countries.
3- Improved agriculture
4- Improved medicine
5- Improved transportation
6- Regulation of health and hygiene.
When did the post World War II “baby boom” occur including when did it end?
The Post WWII baby boom occurred in 1945 … and ended in 1960s.
Why did the global population growth accelerate after 1945?
It accelerated due to
- the post war baby boom
- the modernization of developing countries
- creation of institutions to help the world economy (IMF, WHO, World Trade Organization, etc.)
What is meant by the “baby boom echo”?
The baby boom echo is the number of fertile young women and available young men is high because of earlier high birth rates.
When did the fears of the “population bomb take become a central concern?”
Late 1960s
Why were the predictions about the population bomb wrong?
- They assumed that the birth rates started falling, new agricultural methods increased food supply, and many countries instituted family planning.
- It proved to be over-alarmist, it was part of a Malthusian Tradition, and it was tinged by racism.
- Population growth rate had already peaked when people started to worry about it
Improvements in agriculture, technology, and education - Rise in family planning
- Technological improvements
- World was modernizing faster
What and when were the two waves of great migrations?
- The First Great Migration occurred in … from mid nineteenth century to 1914. It was mainly from Europe to North America, due to improvements in communication and transportation
The Second Great Migration occurred in… 1960s to the present. The basic pattern for this migration was people from the 3rd world moving to the 1st world
How were the great migrations different from earlier ones?
The great migrations were different from earlier ones because they were much larger in scale and were often driven by factors like globalization and increased international communication
How was the second wave different from the first?
The second wave was different from the first because … it was mostly people leaving the Third World for the First World.
What are four examples of anti-immigration sentiment (only one can be from the U.S.)
- Anti-Immigrant American party the “no-Nothing Party”.
- Early 2000s right wing populist parties in Europe focused on limited or halted immigration.
- Japanese belief that immigration threatens the cultural identity of the nation.
- anti-immigration demonstrations and riots in the UK
Why are people having so few children? Give four reasons.
- Family Planning and spread of contraceptives are becoming more common
- Children are expensive and taking care of them is time consuming
- New opportunities for women (increased freedom to pursue their careers)
- Lack of societal, workplace, and financial support for parents
How successful was China’s One Child Policy? When did it occur? When did it end? What were some of the problems it caused?
- China’s One Child Policy was highly successful. It resulted in a drastic drop in the population, so much so, that the government is trying to boost their birthrates again.
- It occurred from 1980 - 2015.
- Problems: gender imbalance between males and females, smaller youth population
What were some of the objections to family planning and contraception in general?
Some objections included religious reasons and once populations began to decline, due to contraceptives, it became less popular
Does religion influence birthrates? Give examples to support your answer.
Yes, religion influence birth rates:
- Latin America: Family planning ran into a problem with the Catholic Church, which opposed the use of contraceptives.
- Iran: in Islamic societies, the demographic transition tends to follow , once women are educated and have alternative possibilities for self-fulfillment, and once society is urbanized fertility falls. When the Islamic Republic came into power in Iran in 1979 it took a pro-natalist stand and discontinued family planning programs of the previous government and lowered the marriage age.
How have changes in the family, in religious observance, and the women’s movement influence declining birthrates?
The more women that are focused on their careers, the less likely they will have a large amount of children. Additionally, less people are following a religion, which negatively impacts birth rates, as many religions promote having many children.
What are the main problems of aging societies?
- Places an enormous burden on younger people
- Older people often need expensive medicare and personal care
- Older people are more conservative and less innovative
How successful have pro-natal policies been? Give examples of successes and failures?
- Not as successful as countries wanted
- Success: Sweden → generous family allowances, prohibited practices such as firing pregnant women. These policies raised the birth rate only a little bit, but it was still considered a success
Failures:
- Japan → incentives of cars, rent-free homes in rural regions, and money. These measures most likely slowed the decline, however they did not increase the fertility rate
- Singapore → governmental encouragement (“Have 3 or More— if you can afford it”), and governmental financial incentives. The birth rate continues to fall
What is meant by the “elephant rises and the dragon declines”?
India’s (the “elephant”) population and power/influence is beginning to take off, while China’s (the “dragon”) is declining
What is meant by the “demographic dividend”?
The growth in an economy that results from a change in the age structure of a country’s population
