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MCDB 150 - Global Problems of Population Growth

Lecture 14 - Demographic Transition in Developing Countries. By 1950, in most of the underdeveloped world, mortality had fallen to about half its pre-modern rate. The birth rate, however, had remained high and, by 1950, was about twice the death rate. For the rest of the century, both rates fell dramatically and in parallel, maintaining the gap. The enormous excess of births over deaths in this period is known as 'the population explosion.' By 1990, the world population was growing at almost 90 million a year. Comparing the Demographic Transition in Europe and in the currently developing countries, the latter started 100 years later at a much lower economic level, fell from much higher birth and death rates, occurred much faster and with a much higher population growth rate, and added vastly more people. The developing countries saw the benefits that had accrued to the West as a result of the transition and then rapidly appropriated it for themselves. But while European countries may have quadrupled their population over 200 years, third world countries grew by as much as ten times in a much shorter period and they are still growing at a rapid rate. The problems of this rapid growth (still about 80 million a year) abound. The traditional scourges of starvation (9 million deaths a year), disease (AIDS, Tuberculosis, Malaria - all claim between 1 and 2 million deaths per year) and war (Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombs with approximately 200,000 deaths) are all far too small to stabilize population. People in developing countries who want to limit their fertility, are often afraid of contraceptives (especially side-effects) and yet are willing to undergo horrendously dangerous illegal abortions to avert a childbirth. (from oyc.yale.edu)

Lecture 14 - Demographic Transition in Developing Countries

Time Lecture Chapters
[00:00:00] 1. Introduction
[00:11:22] 2. Issues with Mortality and Fertility Change in Developing Countries
[00:22:27] 3. Volume of Population Growth in Mortality Transition
[00:26:55] 4. Comparing Fertility Transition to Famine
[00:36:57] 5. Comparing Mortality Transition and Disease and War
[00:44:49] 6. Desires to Decrease Fertility
[00:57:11] 7. Abortion
[01:03:05] 8. Family Planning and Fertility Decline Worldwide

References
Lecture 14 - Demographic Transition in Developing Countries
Instructor: Robert Wyman. Resources: Notes - Lecture 14 [pdf]. Transcript [html]. Audio [mp3]. Download Video [mov].

Go to the Course Home or watch other lectures:

Lecture 01 - Evolution of Sex and Reproductive Strategies
Lecture 02 - Sex and Violence Among the Apes
Lecture 03 - From Ape to Human
Lecture 04 - When Humans Were Scarce
Lecture 05 - Why Is Africa Different?
Lecture 06 - Malthusian Times
Lecture 07 - Demographic Transition in Europe; Mortality Decline
Lecture 08 - Demographic Transition in Europe; Fertility Decline
Lecture 09 - Demographic Transition in Europe
Lecture 10 - Quantitative Aspects
Lecture 11 - Low Fertility in Developed Countries
Lecture 12 - Human and Environmental Impacts
Lecture 13 - Fertility Attitudes and Practices
Lecture 14 - Demographic Transition in Developing Countries
Lecture 15 - Female Disadvantage
Lecture 16 - Population in Traditional China
Lecture 17 - Population in Modern China
Lecture 18 - Economic Impact of Population Growth
Lecture 19 - Economic Motivations for Fertility
Lecture 20 - Teen Sexuality and Teen Pregnancy
Lecture 21 - Global Demography of Abortion
Lecture 22 - Media and the Fertility Transition in Developing Countries
Lecture 23 - Biology and History of Abortion
Lecture 24 - Population and the Environment