Human Population Growth
Trends
Demography = study of populations
Developed Countries
a. Mostly wealthy countries
b. Low birth rate (where some
have declined), and death
rate
c. Average life expectancy (past
the age of 75)
d. Rapidly aging population
e. Enjoy industrial growth and
a flourishing economy
Developing Countries
a. Relatively high birth rate (big gap
between birth and death rate)
b. Low life expectancy
c. Considered the poorest countries
d. Poor human development
e. Depend on developed countries for
help (beginning stages of
development)
f. Shortage of supplies: food, water,
medical, education
How would you
compare the
populations between
a developed and a
developing country?
Stages of Demographic Transition
Stage 1: High Stationary
(high birth and death rates,
but growth is small)
Reasons for high birth rate:
a. Limited birth control, on
family planning
b. High infant mortality rate,
encouraging more children
c. Children seen as the future
income
Reasons for high death rate:
a. High incidence of disease
b. Poor nutrition and famine
c. Poor hygiene
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Stage 2: Early Expanding (high birth rate, but falling death rate)
The total population begins to expand rapidly
Reasons for high birth rate:
a. Economy is based on agriculture, children are needed to work
b. No form of birth control
Reasons for falling death rate:
a. Improved public health, and better nutrition
b. Lower child mortality rate
Stage 3: Late Expanding (falling birth rate, continuing falling death rate)
The population growth slows down
Reasons for falling birth rate:
a. Emancipation of women and better education
b. Women entering the work force, birth control, small families
c. Changes in social trends and fashion, rise in materialism
Reasons for falling death rate:
a. More medical advances
b. Lower infant mortality rate
Stage 4: Low Stationary (low fluctuating, low birth rate and low death rate)
The population growth is small, and fertility continues to fall
a. People move to urban areas, wealth improves and they want more
possessions (means there is less money available for having children)
b. Growth rate is zero, death rate is low and fluctuating
c. Life expectancy is high, so even more people are living to be older
Stage 5: Declining (death rate slightly exceeds the birth rate;
causing a population decline)
Very few countries are considered in stage 5
a. less money available to raise children because people have
dependent elderly relatives
b. Death rate is low and fluctuating
c. Population growth rate is negative
d. More older people than younger people
LET’S RECAP…
1. _____________ countries have a rapidly aging population.
2. _____________ countries are some of the poorest; typically have high birth
rates and low life expectancy.
3. During stage ____ of demographic transition, populations have limited birth
control which causes an increase in population numbers.
4. The population decreases during stage ____ due to spending resources
taking care of elderly relatives
Forecasting Population Size
Population Pyramid
1. Demographers can make
many predictions based on
age structures
a. plots the percentages of
numbers of males and
females in the total population
in each of three age categories:
- prereproductive (ages 0-14)
- reproductive (ages 15-44)
- postreproductive (ages 45 and up)
Countries with many
people below 15 years
old has a powerful builtin momentum to
increase it population
size
How can population
growth be slowed in
developing
countries?
An effective
program to
reduce birth
rate
How would you compare
the population growth of
the three countries in the
graph below?
Age Structure and Economic Projections
Population increased by 79 million
between 1946 and 1964! (baby
boom)
How do they affect our current
population structure?
What happens
when they leave
the workforce?
a. Baby boomers make up about
half the all adult Americans
a. 50-something and 60something markets
b. As a result:
a. Dominate the population’s
demand for goods and
services
b. Play an increasingly
important role in deciding
who gets elected and what
laws are passed
The Social Security Tax of
the current generation are
used to pay the benefit of
the current retirees!
As more enter retirement,
the burden of support falls
on generation X and Y
LET’S RECAP…
1. Look at the diagram to the right,
Mexico is experiencing __________
growth.
2. Look at the diagram to the right, the
United States is experiencing _________
growth.
Impact of Rapid Population
Growth
a.
b.
c.
d.
Social
Government services can’t cope
with the rapid increase (not
everyone has access)
In large families, children have
to help support financially
Overcrowding: people are forced
to live in makeshift houses
(leads to unclean water and
other health issues).
Food shortages.
Political
a. Most of the population is
made of younger
individuals; so government
policies are focused on
issues important to the
younger population
b. Fewer older members
c. Government has to make
policies to bring the
population growth under
control
Economic
a. Aren’t enough jobs for the
number of people in the area;
unemployment increases
b. Increased poverty because
more people are born into
families that are already poor
On the Land
a. Shortage of arable land (land
that can be used to grow crops)
b. Urbanization and suburban
sprawl has lead to traffic jams,
inadequate infrastructure, and
the reduction of land for farms
and wildlife habitat
c. Housing within cities has
become more costly, more
dense, and in short supply
Programs/Strategies to Control
Population Growth
Countries need to control rapid population growth and they also need to
develop in a way that allows people of today to get the things they need without
stopping people in the future getting what they need.
Birth control programs aim to reduce the birth rate. Some governments do
this by having laws about how many children couples are allowed to have.
Governments also help couples to plan (limit) how many children they have
by offering free contraception and sex education.
This helps towards sustainable development because it means the
population won’t get much bigger.
Immigration laws aim to control immigration (people moving to a country
to live there permanently).
Governments can limit the number of people that are allowed to
immigrates.
They can also be selective about who they left in (ex: letting in fewer
people of child bearing age means there will be fewer immigrants having
children)
LET’S RECAP…
1. Rapid population growth results in ______________ in the cities, and has
forced people to live in makeshift houses.
2. Rapid population growth has resulted in _______ water, ______ of the food
supply, and other _________ concerns.
3. Suburban _________ has increased _______ jams, and reduced land use for
farmland and __________ habitat.
4. One way to control the population growth is through _____ _______
programs.