Topic 3: Part A – Population Distribution and Structure

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TOPIC 3: PART 1
To what factors may be attributable to the distribution of the global population?
Several factors ascertain the distribution of the population around the globe. Some of these factors include climate, cultural factors, and demographic factors like migration, trade, government policies, technology, economic activities, and political boundaries. Severe physical conditions like inadequate opportunities for means of livelihood has discouraged the distribution of population in some areas. Further climatic conditions are very imperative because they influence the distribution of population (White, 2016). Apart from these factors, other factors like economic factor, demographic, social, and political factors also affect population distribution. Political instability has also forced people to migrate from one place to another. People also migrate from one place to another because of economic reasons like trade.
With is the relationship between TFR and GDP and to what this relation may be attributed to?
Sometimes the decision of having children can be very costly. In this case, parents need to make economic considerations when they want to have a child. TFR is the total fertility rate. That is the number of children a woman is expected to have in the course of life. On the other hand, GDP is the gross domestic product. Generally poor and developing countries have a high rate of fertility compared to developed countries. Women will give birth to more than three children in countries that have a GDP of below $1,000 annually. In nations where the GDP is above $10,000, women do not give birth to more than two children. This shows a decreasing relationship between income and fertility (White, 2016).
Explain the concept of life expectancy and how it is reflected in a life insurance premium across age and gender groups.
Life expectancy can be abbreviated as LEB. This is the statistical measure of the average time that is taken by an organism to live depending on the year that organism was born, its current age, and other demographic aspects like the gender. One of the common measures of life expectancy is measured at birth. This is defined in two ways. That is Cohort LEB and period LEB. Consequently, in life expectancy, the amount of premium increases from 8% to 10% for every year of age (White, 2016). That is whole life policies increases with age. The longer the time, the higher the premium because of old age.
Explain why the population structure (the composition of fertility and mortality) varies between countries.
Examples of determinants of population growth are morality, fertility, and migration. Several factors have reduced the role of fertility around the globe. These factors are the use of contraceptives, abortion laws, and erosion of traditional, religious, and cultural practices in societies. Females are normally fertile between their teenage years and their mid-forties (White, 2016). The human male remains fertile throughout although their sperm count reduces with age. If there are no measures taken to control the size of families, it is more likely that the human population will continue to increase. In developed countries like China, women give birth to fewer children compared to women in sub- Saharan Africa. Mortality reduces the population. There are low rates of mortality in developed countries than poor and develoing countries.
PART B
Explain what a Malthusian trap is and why it has not occurred.
The Malthusian theory was a theory that was developed by Robert Malthus. This theory asserts that population growth is exponential and the growth of food supply is linear in the economy. This theory is also referred to as the population trap. According to this theory, the population can strop increasing/growing if the supply of food is limited and people will starve. This theory asserts that the development of technology will improve the supply of natural resources and this will increase the standards of living (White, 2016). However, the theory of Malthus has not occurred because the human population always grow rapidly compared to the supply of food until there is famine, diseases, and war which might reduce the number of people.
Explain what the demographic transition is and how it impacts the world’s population.
The phenomenon of demographic transition refers to the historical shift in demographics that is from high rates of birth and high rates of infant mortality in societies where there is minimum technology, poor economic development, and poor education. It can also be described as the changing patterns in fertility and mortality in societies. When there are high rates of birth in society the population increased rapidly. This kind of shift is common in industrialized countries. This theory is accepted in social sciences because it explains the correlation between the decrease in fertility to economic and social development. High incomes result in a low population (White, 2016).
PART C
Global migration is a complex issue linked with differences in levels of economic development. What could be the trends shaping global migration in the coming decades?
In the next decade, there will be an im...