Category: Population

As of today, world’s demographic realities are characterized by an unprecedented growth of planet’s population, which during the course of last century had assumed exponential subtleties. Whereas; through the years 1800-1900 world’s population has grown by 600 million, thus – reaching 1.6 billion by the beginning of 20^th century, during the course of first half of 20^th century, it has grown by another billion.

Throughout the second half of 20^th century, world’s population has grown by 3 billion. In other words – Earth is being already overpopulated as it is. And, as demographical statistics show, it is namely the talent in making babies, on the part of people from Third World countries, which accounted by 85% of world’s population growth in the second half of 20^th century.

It is important to understand that at least 2 billion people, which had been added to world’s population most recently, are best described as ‘human burden’, because without being able to contribute to world’s cultural and scientific progress, they nevertheless require resources to sustain their existence, the very purpose of which is being concerned with making even more babies.

And, the reason why these people are incapable of contributing to an overall civilizational progress, has been revealed in Vanhanen and Lynn’s book IQ and the Wealth of Nations.

As it appears from the book, people’s average rate of IQ relates to their willingness to reproduce themselves in counter-geometric progression – that is, the lower is the rate of people’s IQ, the more children they have per family. For example, the average rate of citizens’ IQ in Ethiopia equals 63. And, despite being subjected to never-ending civil wars and famine, within the matter of last fifty years, the population of Ethiopia was tripled

Thus, the dynamics on world’s geopolitical arena are best discussed in terms of Darwinian evolution, which proves once again the full objectivity of evolutionary laws – living organisms that lack complexity compensate for this lack by sheer numbers.

Just as pilot fishes, which can only ensure their continuous survival by feeding on leftovers of sharks’ meals, non-whites became fully ‘specialized’ sub-specie – they can only be enjoying comparatively tolerable standards of living, for as long as they maintain strong social links with representatives of continuously evolving white race.

And, once these links are being severed, as it happened in Africa during the course of sixties and seventies, their evolutionary status quo becomes instantly reestablished, with former colonial subjects returning to the state of primeval savagery.

Without being able to sustain tolerable standards of living in their own countries, due to their lowered intellectual abilities and due to their endowment with rural (‘traditional’) mentality, people in Third World countries have no option but to try legally and illegally immigrate to traditionally white countries.

And, as practice shows, after having immigrated to these countries, they become instantly preoccupied with making babies, while creating their own societies within the host society, and while demanding even more special rights and privileges, on the account of their ‘ethnic uniqueness’.

For example, the population of Hispanics in U.S. is expected to increase from 22.5 million (as of 1990) to 90 million by the year 2050. Nevertheless, it is highly doubtful whether these people are going to benefit America by their presence a whole lot, as specifics of Hispanics’ biological makeup, makes their mode of existence quite incompatible with American post-industrial realities. It is now being estimated that the dropout rate among Hispanics in America’s high schools accounts for 45%-50%.

In his article, Crosnoe (2005) states: “Compared to other racial/ethnic populations, Hispanics lag behind on most indicators of academic progress, such as grades, test scores, and social-psychological adjustment in school” (563). In other words, by the year 2050, at least 30-40 million people would be added to the army of uneducated and unemployed Americans, who rely on welfare checks and on pushing drugs on the streets as the solemn source of their income.

Despite being continuously ‘educated’ on the sheer beneficence of multiculturalism, more and more Americans begin to realize what would be the actual realities of living in America’s ‘multicultural paradise’ in the future. Even today, there are many ‘multicultural’ public schools in this country, where students are being searched by police officers on possession of guns and drugs, before being allowed to walk into the classroom.

In its turn, this explains the phenomenon of a so-called ‘white plight’ – the process of white Americans relocating to racially secluded ‘white suburbia’ with plenty of private schools, where their children will not only be taught how to ’celebrate diversity’ but also how to solve math equations, for a change, without being referred to as ‘nerds’.

As it was pointed out by Sowell (2005): “The decades-long attempts to mix black and white school children through school busing produced no real educational benefits but much racial polarization and ill will. The same thing continues to be done in colleges in the name of “diversity” – and with the same bad results” (Capitalism Magazine).

In her article, Pulido (2000) expounds on the subtleties of ‘white plight’ in California: “Not only do whites continue to move to Orange County (where whites constitute up to 90 percent of the population), but the flight of white Angelenos has spread to San Diego, central California, and throughout the West… Central Los Angeles remains almost completely non-white, and whites continue to congregate along the periphery” (31).

Thus, it would only be logical to expect that in 20-30 years from now, the process of ‘white flight’, which now continues to gain an exponential momentum, will result in American cities becoming the equivalent of South-African post-apartheid cities – essentially Third World slums, with sparse White enclaves, featuring barbed wire and guard towers along their perimeters.

Nevertheless, it would be wrong to refer to ‘white flight’ as solely American phenomenon. Essentially the same demographic trends define the realities of ‘multicultural’ living in other Western countries, as well. Nowadays, in such Europe’s cities as London and Paris, not a single year goes by without representatives of racial minorities setting cars on fire, looting stores and indulging in gang-rape.

This causes more and more white citizens to realize themselves foreigners in their own countries and naturally predisposes them towards embarking upon ‘white flight’ to the suburbia where they can feel relatively safe.

In his article, Doughty (2005) states: “A growing race divide is separating Britain’s inner cities from the surrounding suburbs and countryside, an analysis of migration showed yesterday… White people are moving out of Manchester, Birmingham and Bradford while the ethnic minority populations of those cities are growing fast” (Bnet). Thus, it is namely continuously increasing ‘white flight’ from Western large cities, which will define the realities of these cities’ urban living in the future.

Unfortunately, once there will be no whites left, this living will effectively cease being urban, just as it happened in many Western megalopolises’ ethnic ‘ghettos’, where residents dispose of their garbage by throwing it out on the street, while genuinely believing that there is nothing wrong with such their practice.

References

Crosnoe, Robert “The Diverse Experiences of Hispanic Students in the American Educational System”. Sociological Forum 20.4 (2005): 561-588.

Doughty, Steve “The Rise of ‘White Flight”. 2005. Web.

Lynn, Richard. & Vanhanen, Tatu. IQ and the Wealth of Nations. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2002.

Pulido, Laura “Rethinking Environmental Racism: White Privilege and Urban Development in Southern California”. Annals of the Association of American Geographers 90.1 (2000): 12-40.

Sowell, Thomas “The New White Flight”. 2005. Capitalism Magazine. Web.

Introduction

High population growth is a problem than has affected the economies of a myriad of developing countries all over the world. Poverty, insecurity, unemployment, lack of sanitation, poor health facilities, lack of adequate education facilities are all aspects of countries that face the problem of high population growth.

This paper investigates the causes of high population growth, determines the consequences of high population growth, suggests policy approaches that can be used to contain high population growth and examines the effectiveness of policies employed by China and India in a bid to curb high population growth.

Causes of high population growth

There are a number of factors that result to high population growth in countries all over the world. One of these factors is increase in the volume of food produced, and an increase in the distribution networks of food. This is a factor for overpopulation because it assures people of food security, leading to high birth rates. In addition to the high birth rates, the food security also reduces the mortality of the population, which could occur if the food accessible by the public was inadequate.

Another factor that causes high population growth is the improvement in the health of the public. This is usually correlated to the issue of water and sanitation. It is a factor because, depending on the status of public health in a certain country, disease prevalence can be predicted.

Therefore, a country in which public health is maintained will have less instances of diseases, and thus its mortality rate will be low. This translates to high population growth. Also a cause of high population growth is the level of sophistication of a nation, in terms of medical technology like antibiotics and vaccines, and also in terms of other advantages that come with education (Kinder, 2011, p. 1).

This leads to high population growth because a nation in which there is advanced, and reliable medical technology will have low mortality rates for the obvious reasons. As stated, the level of education in a nation is very important since, a society in which people are adequately learned will be free from minor problems like health complications that result from living in a filthy surrounding.

The effect of education on population is however paradoxical since lack of education is also associated with high population growth. This is because people lacking education seem to live without taking adequate and appropriate measures to curb population growth. This happens primarily because they do not understand the negative effects that population has on all realms of life, and also because they may not have sufficient knowledge about population control methods.

With this discussion, the direct (main) causes of high population growth can be identified. These include, low mortality rates, high life expectancy, high birth rates, migration etcetera.

Consequences of high population growth on economic development

High population growth has far-reaching consequences on the economy of any country that it affects. The effects of high population growth on developed and developing countries are different in terms of nature, extent, and even possible solutions.

Developed countries

A significant percentage of the increase in the population of developed countries is made up of immigrants, both illegal and legal. This is because these countries have numerous manufacturing plants, and a lot of positions for menial jobs that do not attract local population.

People from developing countries therefore migrate to developed countries like the United States, European countries etc, to fill those vacancies. Although the benefit of immigrants to the economy of the developed countries is still a controversial issue, these people affect the economy of developed countries in a number of ways.

For instance, by providing cheap labour to the manufacturing plants, the population of immigrants boost the manufacturing industry, which in turn boosts the economy of the country. On the other hand, immigrants, both illegal and legal have caused a variety of social problems for the developed countries (Easterlin, 2006, p. 23). For instance, population increase due to an increase in the number of immigrants is associated with high rates of crime, drug trafficking, etcetera.

The aforementioned existence of jobs in manufacturing plants has also led to high urbanization rates for developed countries. This also has its economic repercussions for the developed countries. For instance, high urbanization rates are associated with high crime rates, decadence of societal morals, and even high population growth. These effects have serious implications for the development of the economy.

Developing countries

First of all, high population growth makes it difficult for developing countries to provide sufficient social structures to the public. This is because such countries are forced to attend to large numbers of people in the growing population amid limited resources. For instance, in a developing country with high population growth, it is more likely that there the educational facilities in the countries will be inadequate. This will be especially so for minority groups like women.

As a result of inadequate educational facilities, the public will not get the required education, and thus the economy of the country will be adversely affected since education is a prerequisite to economic development because it provides skilled labour. The lack of adequate facilities for education will also fuel population growth since uneducated people tend to be more fertile than their educated counterparts (Easterlin, 2006, p. 34).

Another economic consequence of high population growth is the frequent occurrences of famines in highly populated countries. The famine affects a large part of the population, which is also poor. This kind of a situation then worsens some other factors like the malnutrition of children, use of child labour or even maternal and childhood mortality.

In such a situation, governments in developing countries are forced to use resources in emergency measures against such effects as famine. This makes the government to forego other important economic activities in order to mitigate effects of famines, malnutrition etcetera.

High population growth has also been seen as a cause of political instability due to weak governance, and regional warfare. This is because communities and individuals are more likely to fight for scarce resources as the population grows. This is because the resources continuously become insufficient to serve the needs of the population as it grows.

The phenomenon of high population growth is also associable with high rates of unemployment, which is a great set-back to the efforts made by the developing countries in a bid to industrialize (Easterlin, 2006, p. 39).

The above mentioned factors lead many developing countries to seek economic assistance, or foreign aid, from then developed countries. Despite the fact that the usefulness of foreign aid in the economic advancement of developing countries is controversial, foreign aid remains a burden for the country seeking it. The countries may even be made to agree to terms they are nit comfortable with in order to get economic assistance.

Policy recommendations

From the discussion above, it is apparent that high population growth has a lot of negative effects to the economies where it occurs. There is thus an urgent need for a more nuanced approach in policy making to ensure that population growth is effectively checked, and also ensure that its effects on the economy of countries are mitigated.

Developed Countries

For developed countries, the main causes of high population are immigration and rural-urban migration. Since these two work together to bring about devastating effects on the economy, policies should be developed for addressing the problems they bring, while utilizing the advantages that they bring.

For instance, for the immigration problem, governments in developed countries should ensure that proper immigration policies are developed so that the government can keep track of, and be able to control immigration. This can be done by either eradicating or reducing the number of illegal immigrants (Todaro, 1997, p. 20).

This will ensure that any policies that the government develops in relation to manufacturing plant workers, is based on factual information, and thus it is not misguided by wild estimations. Such a strategy is bound to reduce or eliminate the economic disadvantages posed by immigration, and make the latter a resource that can be utilized to better the economy.

For the rural-urban migration, governments in developed countries should develop appropriate policies that will ensure that the negative effects of urban migration are mitigated. A potential project objective within such a policy is to increase the number of police in urban areas, as well as to increase increased in order to reduce crime rates. Other aspects of urban congestion like maintaining sanitation standards must also be observed.

Developing countries

For the developing countries, a lot needs to be done in order to mitigate the effects of high population growth. Among the policy approaches that can be taken is an attempt to reduce the population growth itself. This can be done by employing a variety of means.

These means include, greater advocacy for the use of family planning methods, provision of family planning facilities to the public, development of policies encouraging a minimum number of children, accompanied by incentives for those who uphold it, etcetera. In addition to this, governments in developing countries may ensure that there is progressive improvement in the provision of education facilities and services, because this can potentially lead to low population growth (Todaro, 1997, p. 21).

Just like in the developed countries, developing countries also need to develop strict policies on immigration in a bid to reduce their high population growth. This is because political instability and economic factors has led to high immigration rates in these countries.

A reduction in the number of immigrants entering a country in a year will lead to low population growth, or even population decline, which will, in turn lead to a better economy which is shown by high per capita GDP, and improvement of other economic indicators.

Similarly, governments in developing countries should also develop policies that are aimed at reducing the rate of rural-urban migration. Some of the policies that can be employed include the devolvement of the government in countries where devolved governments are not in existence. This will help in mitigating the undesirable effects of high population growth.

A policy for employment creation is also bound to have a positive effect on population growth since people tend to be more fertile when they are idle. In addition to this, people in poverty also tend to be more fertile than people who are not poor. Governments in developing countries should therefore develop employment creation n policies as a way of reducing population growth, and its effects on their economy (Todaro, 1997, p. 23a).

There is also a need for a strict policy for monitoring and feedback. This will ensure that any good policies for curbing high population growth rate can be evaluated to see if the desired impact is being realized.

Approaches adopted in India and China

Among the countries that have struggled with high population growth are India and China. China has the highest population in the world followed by India. These two countries have tried to implement policies aimed at reducing population growth. Let us examine how effective these policies have been.

Between the years 1972 and 1977, the government of India imposed a policy for forced sterilization. This program did not receive backing from the public, and thus it did not achieve much. This was subsequently replaced by voluntary family planning integrated with better maternal and child healthcare.

A study of Indian population after implementation of the aforementioned programs does not reveal much success as the population has always been on the rise. This can be attributed to the failure by the Indian government to implement the programs at grass root level. Early in the last decade, the government of India suggested stripping of states with high population growth of their voting rights.

This is an unrealistic approach that can potentially cause more harm than good. The one-child family policy has not seen much success since the incentives promised by the government for one-child families and families with restricted sizes have not been given much attention (Kumar, 2003, p. 1).

As stated, China has experienced, more or less, the same problems as India. However, China’s policies and programs are far off more effective than those of India.

Among the policies than China has used to reduce its population growth is the informal policy that dictates that couples living in urban areas have one child, and their counterparts in rural areas have two children, on condition that the first one is a girl. However, people belonging to ethnic minorities are permitted to have a maximum of three children due o their special circumstances.

This policy has resulted in abortions and sterilization for both men and women who already have kids. This policy has even employed coercion to make people obey it, as people unwilling to procure abortions have, oftentimes, been forced to procure abortions. Although this policy is, kind of, undemocratic, it has achieved substantial success in China (Kumar, 2003, p. 1).

Conclusion

As evidenced in the discussion above, high population growth has adverse effects on the economy of a nation. Policies developed to reduce population growth and its effects should be realistic, and they should be supported by the public in order for them to have the desired effects. It is thus of essence for countries to employ a consultative approach in formulating population reduction policies.

Reference List

Easterlin, Richard. 2006. Effects of Population Growth on the Economic Development of Developing Countries. University of Pennsylvania.

Kinder, Carolyn. 2011. The Population Explosion: Causes and Consequences . New Haven Teachers Institute. http://teachersinstitute.yale.edu/curriculum/units/1998/7/98.07.02.x.html

Kumar, Ramana.2003. India and China: Population Growth. Web.

Todaro, Michael. 1997. Development Policy and Population Growth: A Framework for Planners. Population and Development Review.

Introduction

Countries are going into highly unfamiliar territory regarding aging population which is increasing rapidly. Current rise in life expectancy and reduce in fertility rates are bringing about a major change in the world age structure.

The population of people who are above the age of 60 is estimated as one billion by 2025 and around 2.5 billion by 2050, symbolizing 25% of the total population of the world (Marchildon, 2004, p. 51). The number of people who are 80 years old and above is estimated to increase from 1% to 5% of the world population between now and 2050 (Marchildon, 2004, p. 51).

The projected increase of the aging population in many countries over the next 40 years will have an exceptional effect on the countries’ health care facilities, particularly in line with distribution and needs for health care employees (Horlacher & MacKella, 2003). The distribution of health care human resources can reduce while they grow old and this result in huge population retiring and cutting their usual working hours.

All together, aging population use excessively huge amount of country’s health care facilities, hence needs for these services may perhaps rise. Increase of older adults will as well have change on the health care personnel’s skills and services which should be prepared to serve the patients and environment where such services if offered.

Effects on Economy

Given that various age groups have different requirements, the economy of the country will probably change while aging of population increase, this is caused by needs for particular services like health care, education, and pension. An ordinary strategy for examining these changes are to consider invariable age-specific activities regarding jobs, savings, and consumption, and to examine the impact of changes in these different age brackets for these significant providers to the country’s economy (Holzmann, 2009, p. 8).

Different countries have different ways to handle aging population and this may alleviate the pessimistic effects of aging. Since developed countries have rapid aging than developing or underdeveloped countries, the former can fall back on immigrant employment from the latter to make up for the retirement and aging of their own workforce. The huge groups of employed persons in rich countries are probably to be interested in the job opportunities which are produced.

Immigration to developed countries from developing countries could thus supposedly sluggish the developed countries to experience huge population of aging population and this process would relive the pressure on both types of economies. Immigration often goes with social issues and conflicts and several rich nations are now struggling with complex balance between the demands for workforce and the significance of controlling social effects of migration.

More widely, old people will need raised assistance of different kinds such as better access to medical services and income securities which are considered to be essential to them than the younger population (Vettori, 2010, p. 35).

As families have usually offered this assistance in several developing nations, progressively this assistance is less dependable, especially when women engage in employment in bigger numbers. Lesser birthrates, the propensity of children to abandon their families, extensive migration from rural to urban areas, and change in cultural beliefs concerning filial compulsions are progressively abandoning the aged bereft of the protection they previously possess.

Countries take on a life cycle viewpoint, derived from the point that individual desires and involvement are not similar in different stages in life. Particularly, the amount of expenditure to production is higher in younger people and old people and very low for the working class people. This signifies that main contributors of development of economy like collective labor distribution, output, consumption, and savings will likely to differ relying on where most people are placed in the life cycle.

Among such issues, it is well recognized that labor distribution and savings are greater among working class adults than old people, who are over 60 years of age (Hyman, 2004). A country with huge population of young people and old people is probably to face slower growth in economy than a country with higher population of working class people.

If activities of certain age groups regarding labor distribution and savings were unchanging, labor distribution and savings per capita would likely to reduce with increasing in aging population share.

Creating all other issues like migration and productivity equivalent, this creates the growth of income per capita slow and this situation seems to bring about pessimistic perspectives of critics for example Peter Peterson, who asserted that, “global aging could trigger a crisis that engulfs the world economy [and] may even threaten democracy itself” (Spence & Leipziger, 2010, p. 312).

Ken Dychtwald as well stated that, “we’re going to have a self-centered generation just sucking down all the resources” (Spence & Leipziger, 2010, p. 312) and other studies have cautioned that aging in America creates its Medicare projects and social security indefensible in future.

The evident increase in aging population, in poor countries, signifies that these countries may “age” before they become “well-off,” a state which will be very demanding than what the rich countries have experienced. For instance, implementing economically practical pension arrangements will be greatly complex for developed countries (Lloyd-Sherlock, 2010, p. 2).

Further than basic resource limitations, the prevalence of informal sector employment, in developing countries, creates the plan and accomplishment of these systems to be more complex.

Health care Needs and Costs

The aging of world population has been a major provider to the increase in occurrence of several chronic circumstances and there will be fast increase in medical care costs for people who are above 60 years of age, proposing that aging population can raise both desires and costs. Demographic tendencies also propose that countries might face a 35% decrease in population of general practitioners in several countries by 2050.

On the other hand, statistics on the health care expenses reported that aging population has been and will probably go on to be minor source of force on medical expenses compared with no-aging perspectives, even though the statement proposes that ageing itself will have produced an raise or above 35% in real per capita medical expenses in the coming 20 years (Sultz & Young, 2010, p. 23).

Another significance effect which is cause by aging population, through raising the needs for health care facilities, is that it might increase the cost of limited health care resources and therefore bringing about raise in the rate of providing medical facilities to all aging population.

The field which is mostly affected by this is health care workforce. Statistics from Hyman (2004) reported that the aging population consumes physician services more extensively than youths and it appears probably that sturdy associations between facilities and age stages are present with treatment.

Aging population has more restrictions in relation to participating in daily activities than youth or other age groups, because they are more vulnerable to some kinds of disabilities. Around 40% of people age 60 and above have restrictions in daily activities, matched up to around 5% of people age between 18 and 45 (Horlacher & MacKella, 2003).

The desires and consumption patterns of baby boomer aging population can be dissimilar from people of present aging population in significant ways and this will, as well, have impact on the needs placed on the medical care structure in the coming years.

Conclusion

Even though considering the instances at the past cannot be likely for an aging future, people can be contented in the point that several societies have adopted finely with huge growth of population in the past century.

The global economy has remarkably coped with and more significantly, take advantage of the growing population to enhance its economy. If the current policymakers make a timely start to get ready for the impacts of aging population, the expected significant change in aging population is likely to result in less adversity than several people foresee.

Generally, to conclude this discussion we can state that the pressures probably to be inserted by this aging population on health care system and social settings are real, but minimal enough to be simply controlled. The view that the elderly people are probably to cause the public health care facilities to fall down has been logically refuted several times.

The greatest risk created by aging population is that, in discarding the apocalyptic situations of people who observe aging as a main issue entailing system reform, supporters, who oppose the ideas that aging is a problem, have opinions which motivate governments and the public to be unworried and should do something now when it is simpler to do so.

References

Holzmann, R. (2009). Aging population, pension funds, and financial markets: regional perspectives and global challenges for central, eastern, and southern Europe. Washington DC: World Bank Publications.

Horlacher, D., & MacKella, L. (2003). Population Aging in Japan: Policy Lessons for Sourth-East Asia. Asia-Pacific Development Journal , 10(1): 97-122.

Hyman, S. (2004). Mental Health in an Aging Population: The NIMH Perspective. Focus, 2(2): 282-287.

Lloyd-Sherlock, P. (2010). Population ageing and international development: from generalisation to evidence. Bristol: The Policy Press.

Marchildon, G. (2004). Romanow Papers: The fiscal sustainability of health care in Canada. London: University of Toronto Press.

Spence, M., & Leipziger, D. (2010). Globalization and growth implications for a post-crisis world. Washington DC: World Bank Publications.

Sultz, H., & Young, K. (2010). Health Care USA. London: Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Vettori, S. (2010). Ageing populations and changing labour markets. Burlington: Gower Publishing.

Introduction

Background Information

Following the division in the United States on how to address immigration concerns, one of the observations made is that the Congress has failed to pass any legislation aimed at reforming immigration laws. Several factors are behind this failure. One of them is the lack of empirical evidence to highlight the contributions made by immigrants to the economy. There are varying opinions on the contribution of immigrant population to the economy. Some people believe that this group lowers wages. As a result, the local economy is negatively affected. Others claim that the benefits of these individuals are limited to metropolitan economies.

The issue of immigrants in the US is described as a complex demographic phenomenon. One of the main reasons behind the increase in population is the peak in the volume of immigrants moving across the border. Immigrants have also significantly contributed to cultural changes throughout the country. Different people have had different views concerning the issue of immigration. The reason is that the US Congress has not yet formulated legislations to deal with the issue. As such, it seems that the government has no policies to deal with the problem.

Problem Statement

The country is divided on how to address immigration concerns with the Congress having failed to pass any legislation to reform these laws. Some are of the opinion that the immigrant population has positive results on the economy, while others oppose this view. The failure is attributed to the fact that little empirical data is available to support legislation. The paper will clarify the effects the immigrant population has on the median income of metropolitan areas in the US.

Research Question and Hypothesis

• Ho: The median income of households in metropolitans with large numbers of immigrants is high.
• Ha: Metropolitan areas with high concentration of immigrants have high poverty indexes than others.

Data

To complete this project, the researcher used data from 2000 U.S. census. The data was used to highlight the link between the concentration of immigrants and median household income. The relationship between the 389 metropolitan areas in the US was reviewed. In addition, the number of Latino and Asian immigrants was reviewed independently. The aim was to highlight variations in the background of immigrants in the selected metropolitan economies.

Literature Review

The effect of the immigrant population on the economy of the US is not well known. Today, it is a matter of speculation among members of the American population who tend to use their own reasoning to interpret the effect of the increasing immigrant population. Some studies show that the immigrant population has positive effects on the median income and the economy as a whole of metropolitan in the US while others has painted a completely different picture.

For instance, the effect of the Latino immigrants on the economy of the country has been viewed from different perspectives. Some feel that the increasing number of Latinos will have adverse effects on the Black American population resulting from competition for similar employment opportunities. In this case, there are fears that further increase in their numbers will result in rising cases of unemployment (Borjas 1361). Subsequently, the supply for labor will be higher compared to its demand. As such, this will drive down the amount of wages paid to the Black population.

A number of studies have however been of the contrary opinion. They have shown that the Latino and Black American population complement each other. In the job market, the Latino population acts as a substitute to Black Americans. As such, cities found to have a declining Black population have been found to warmly welcome the influx of Latinos. In these localities, the existence of individuals of Latino background is of benefit to the economy.

To begin with, they provide labor in these metropolitan areas. As such, they play a vital role in infrastructural development. They also contribute to the tax base of these metropolitan areas (Bruch & Mare 689). In the process they generate income for these metropolitan areas which is later used to fund development. The Latino immigrant population has also provided also an important customer base for the locally produced goods and services. As such, they play a vital role in the growth of the local economy.

Some studies are of the view that an increase in the immigrant population will automatically translate to a rise in the demand for goods and services in the country. Consequently, there is an increase in the scale of production. For example, the increased population growth resulting from an influx in the number of immigrants has resulted in an increasing demand for housing. The situation has created a boom in the construction sector. The immigrants have also been seen to provide a cheap source of labor in such sectors (Ciccone & Peri 403). In the process, they are found to have positive effects on the economy.

Many studies have branded the US as a country of immigrants. Figures show that approximately 1.25 million immigrants enter the US annually (Gruelich, Quigley & Raphael 164). Their numbers account for 40 percent of the country’s population growth. They enter the country through legally and illegally means. Close to between 35-40 percent of the immigrant population is undocumented. Majority of these persons originate from Mexico and Central America.

Majority of these persons are often uneducated with some lacking basic communication skills in English, the national language in the US. The group of persons often tends to seek low income jobs as a result of their skill shortage. Majority of them have been seen to migrate into metropolitan areas to take advantage of the boom in the construction sector. Here, they involve themselves with casual jobs. Most of these jobs are poorly paying. As a result of their meager income, the median income of most of these metropolitan areas also tends to reduce significantly.

Besides this group, another quarter of the immigrant population in to the US is from the Asian countries. Majority of them originate from China and India. The group is composed of highly skilled individuals. They have excellent communication skills and have undergone formal training in a variety of professions. The groups of persons often come into the country in search of better employment opportunities (Ciccone & Peri 403).

They find practicing in the US to be lucrative than in their mother countries. The group of immigrants ends up finding well paying jobs in the US. Their careers are well paying. As a result, they play an important role in improving level of median income in metropolitan areas. However, there are concerns that the influx of Asian immigrants into the US will deny American citizens the opportunity to access well paying jobs, especially in the information technology sector.

It is clear that immigrants have varying effects on the economy and the median income of metropolitan areas in the US. In fact, it is just a matter of how one prefers to look at the situation (Tracy 189). It is evident that to some extent the immigrant population can depress the economy of the USA while in other instances is seen to promote it. A number of issues determine the impacts of immigrants on the economy and on median income. Such factors include the number of persons entering the country, their skills, as well as whether or not they are documented.

Data and Methods

The study used a number of sources to collect data. The major source of quantitative data was the 2000 United States Census. The research was conducted across 366 metropolitan areas in the US. Data collected was accurate since it was obtained following a national census. As such, it provided the researcher with population counts as opposed to estimates. The results of the survey were presented in a tabulated manner to ensure ease in interpretation.

Columns were included to come up with more comprehensive results concerning the American population. Key aspects that were assessed in the research included level of education, place of birth, income, poverty, race, means of transport, nationality, line of work, as well as place of residence. The survey only used the census data from households living in the metropolitan areas. Persons involved in the survey were asked over 50 questions. Data was obtained from the US government census and used tables B15003, B05002, B19013, B17001, B03002, B08134, B05006, C24050, B05002, B23025, and DEC_10_SF1_P2.

To test the hypothesis of the immigration population and their effect on the median income of metropolitan areas in the country, the researcher created one variable to measure the proportions of persons living below the poverty index. To determine their percentage, the number of persons living below the poverty index was divided by the total population of the metropolitan areas. The second variable is one of the most important elements.

It involved the determination of the median income for households living in the metropolitan areas. It is, however, important to note that the variable does not portray the current state of affairs. Instead, it shows the situation that existed in metropolitan areas in America in 2000 when the census was conducted. As already indicated, a number of hypotheses were made in this research. One of them is the fact that an increase in the population of immigrants leads to a decrease in median income.

Results

A total of 366 metropolitan areas were used for the study. They are represented in the horizontal axis. It is evident that majority of the people living in metropolitan areas are yet to attain a college degree. In many areas, those who have attained a college degree only account for about 35 percent of the population. Only four areas record that over 50 percent of their population has attained the education level. Its however important to note that the lowest proportion of people with college degree is at 10 percent and the highest is at 70 percent.

In all the metropolitan areas used for the study, the proportion of foreign born individuals did not exceed 40 percent. The largest portion of non-natives is at 37 percent. The lowest level fell below the 5 percent point. Most metropolitan areas in the US have a large proportion of foreign born individuals living below the 10 percent mark. Only four regions report figures above the 30 percent mark.

In all the metropolitan areas used for the study, the median income is above the 30,000 mark. However, only few metropolitan areas go beyond the 80,000 mark. In fact, those with their median income above 80,000 are only three. The highest point of median income stands at 90,000. The median incomes of most metropolitan areas however fall between 40,000 and 60,000.

In all the metropolitan areas, poverty level does not go beyond the 35 percent mark. In most regions, the proportion of those living below the poverty level is below the 25 percent mark. In fact, only five areas have level of poverty beyond 25 percent. In majority of the areas, the figure ranges between 10 and 20 percent. However, there is no area with level of poverty that is below the 5 percent mark.

The vertical axis represents the proportion of people that fall under each racial group per metropolitan area. To obtain the percentage, the value on the axis is to be multiplied by a factor of 100. Metropolitan areas in the US have the aspect of racial diversity. Whites are the dominant race across all areas. Blacks are the second most dominant race. They are followed closely by Latinos. Asians are the least represented race in the metropolitan areas.

The vertical axis represents the percentage of people using the different transportation modes in the metropolitan areas. Majority of people drive alone. 50 percent and 70 percent of the population in metropolitan areas travel between to 30 minutes. The group is followed closely behind by those who travel for a duration ranging between 30 and 60 minutes. Fewer people drive for more than 60 minutes or less than 10 minutes. The smallest proportion of people living in metropolitan areas uses public transport.

The vertical axis shows the proportion of the foreign born immigrants into the metropolitan areas. Latinos make up the highest number of non-native immigrants in US metropolises. In some areas, their proportions are as high as above the 95 percent mark. However, in some regions, their proportion is below the 5 percent mark. Areas recording the highest number of foreign born Asian immigrants have unique traits. For example, the level is just above the 80 percent mark. However, in some areas, the figure falls below the 5 percent mark.

It is evident the metropolitan population in the USA engages in diverse economic activities. Most of them are involved in the service and sales sectors. The group is followed closely by those in the management sector. Natural resources, production, and agricultural sectors have the least number of persons in metropolitan areas. It is however evident that the number of persons in a particular sector varies between the metropolitan areas.

The population of metropolitan areas in the USA is not static. On the contrary, it is constantly changing. Most metropolitan areas experienced changes ranging between 0 and 50 percent. Other areas have however experienced vast changes hitting above the 200 percent mark. Others have negative values of up to -50 percent. No metropolitan area goes below this mark.

Majority of people in all the metropolitans are employed. They are involved in the civil sector. The highest level of involvement in the job market is slightly above the 75 percent mark. In many areas, unemployment rates do not exceed 10 percent. Those areas that go beyond this point do not exceed the 15 percent mark.

Most of the people in metropolitan areas in the US reside in urban centers. In fact, in some localities, they consist more than 95 percent of the metropolitan areas’ total population. The greatest number of metropolitans has between 70 and 85 percent of their population residing in urban settings. No metropolitan area has their urban population below the 40 percent mark.

Discussion and Conclusion

Over the years, the United States Congress has failed to come up with legislations that are aimed at dealing with the issue of immigrants. The reason behind this is that they lack empirical data that shows the effect the immigrant have on the country’s economy. As such, the population is divided on just how much the influx of the immigrant population in their country affects the level of median income recorded for households living in metropolitan areas. Some feel that the immigrant population boosts their economy, while others feel that it may have detrimental effects on the country. Using findings made in the study, the researcher was able to shed more light on some of these issues.

In most metropolitan areas, majority of the people have been found not to have attained a college degree. We can attribute this to the high number of immigrants especially from Mexico and other countries in Central America. Majority of these people have not attained a college degree with only few having undergone formal training (Ciccone & Peri 403). They end up in the country’s informal sectors with most of them serving as casual laborers.

In most metropolitan areas today, a large number of the immigrants are born in the US. They are parented by people who moved into the US from other countries mainly in search of employment. Since majority of the immigrants rarely undergo formal training. As such, their income is often low. With their influx in the country, there has been a decline in the median income. A considerably big proportion of this population also lives below the poverty level as a result of their low income (Borjas 1361). Even despite the influx of immigrants into the US, Whites still remain to be the dominant rate. The reason behind this is that Whites are considered to be the original inhabitants. As such, their population has remained to be high over the years despite the problem of immigrants.

In metropolitan areas in the US, a considerably large number of people drive alone. Few use public means of transport. We can attribute this to the fact that the US is a developed nation with the population’s median income being higher compared to that of most countries across the world. The number of foreign born Latinos exceeds that of Asians. We can attribute this to the fact that Latin American countries are close to the US compared to Asia.

As such, it is easier for foreign born Latinos to find their way into the US. The population is also constantly changing. Most blame this on the lack of elaborate legislations to control the entry of immigrants. In almost all metropolitan areas, most people prefer living in urban areas (Bruch & Mare 689). The reason is that urban settings are associated with easier access to employment opportunities.

Works Cited

Borjas, Grogger. “The Labor Demand Curve is Downward Sloping: Re-examining the Impact of Immigration on the Labor Market.” Quarterly Journal of Economics 118.3 (2003): 1335- 1374. Print.

Bruch, Elizabeth, and Robert Mare. “Neighborhood Choice and Neighborhood Change.” American Journal of Sociology 112.1 (2006): 667-709. Print.

Ciccone, Antonio, and Giovanni Peri. “Identifying Human-Capital Externalities: Theory with Applications.” Review of Economic Studies 73.3 (2006): 381-412. Print.

Gruelich, Erica, John Quigley, and Steven Raphael. “The Anatomy of Rent Burdens: Immigration, Growth, and Rental Housing.” Brookings Papers on Urban Affairs 2004.1 (2004): 149-187. Print.

Tracy, Joseph. “Comment on the Anatomy of Rent Burdens: Immigration, Growth, and Rental Housing.” Brookings Papers on Urban Affairs 2004.1 (2004): 188-192. Print.

The matter of population growth has been a prominent social and economic issue in the last few centuries. Consequently, experts have tried to predict population patterns with the view of aligning global planning matters. Nevertheless, most of the population trends that have transpired in the course of history have caught the world by surprise. Population levels only began to grow exponentially in the last two centuries.

Before this period, the world was experiencing very slow growth in population. For example, the world’s population hit the one billion mark in 1800 and since then global inhabitants have reached more than six billion. With these unprecedented population increments, there are deep concerns as to whether the world has enough resources for all of us. Although technology has played a great part in the sustenance of the global economy, the rising competition for global resources such as water and land is a cause for concern. Another trend that has been rising concern in regards to overpopulation is the food prices that have been increasing uniformly across the world.

One of the earliest authorities on the subject of population growth is Thomas Malthus. In 1798, Malthus wrote an essay titled “An Essay on the Principle of Population” and it had grim predictions when it comes to overpopulation (Holdren & Ehrlich 2004). According to Malthus, the earth’s resources could only support a population of approximately three billion. Furthermore, any growth in population beyond this point would only lead to a scenario where the earth would ‘react’ by autocorrecting the population issue through catastrophic means. This essay supports Malthus’ concept of the need to keep the population growth in check but it does not align with his mass reduction approach.

The population increase that has occurred since Malthus made his predictions has not done so under the conditions that he envisioned. Consequently, even though he was right to caution people about population growth, he was wrong about the earth’s carrying capacity. The resource-capacity of the world can only occur through incremental means while the population has been growing exponentially. For example, in 1800 the population of the world stood at one billion.

However, the population doubled in the next century and by 1900 there were approximately 2 billion global inhabitants (Smail 2002). One of the facts that Malthus might not have considered is that a reduction in mortality would have significant effects on the rate of population growth. The industrial revolution that occurred in the early 1900s had a significant effect on both resource-generation capacity and reduction in mortality rates. By the mid-twentieth century, the global population was growing at unprecedented rates. For instance, by the 1950s the global population had reached three billion and half a century later, the population now stands at seven billion.

These trends are nothing like Malthus envisioned owing to their exponential nature. One of the factors that have facilitated the fast population growth is the reversal in birth and mortality rates. For instance, in 2011 “there were approximately 135 million births and 57 million deaths, thereby creating a population increment of 78 million” (Cohen 2005). Experts reckon that the world will continue to grow at these fast rates. Consequently, the total global population is expected to hit over nine billion people by the year 2050. Most of this population growth will occur in developing countries where fertility rates are still high.

Malthus was right to raise a concern about the earth’s capacity to feed a big population. However, the threshold of three billion inhabitants only applied to a world where the industrial revolution was absent. Currently, all global population stakeholders agree that earth resources are spread thin (Wealth 2008). The most important factor when it comes to resources and sustenance is the ability to strike a balance. At any given time, the innovativeness of the world has to match the demand for resources. For a long period, the need for resources has been a good thing. For example, different segments of the population can sustain each other over the long haul. Furthermore, “the balance between empty and full stomachs (as envisioned by Malthus) has been instrumental in transforming the long-term outlook for economic growth” (Azariadis & Drazen 2000).

The fact that most economies have been expanding faster than their populations have almost refuted Malthus’ original sentiments. However, external factors such as global warming and the perennial risk of food shortage around the world have served to substantiate Malthus’ original concerns (Somerville, Essex, & Le Billon 2014). Although the population threshold is not three billion as Malthus claimed, the world has a certain capacity and it depends on technological capacity.

Currently, the world is imbalanced in terms of resources and the standard of living has been the most relevant tool for measuring resource-distribution. An increase in the standard of living translates into countries and blocs spending more per capita energy (Bloom 2011). Before high standards of living are achieved, there occurs what experts refer to as a ‘demographic dividend’. This dividend transpires when the working-age population spurs an economy to perform at accelerated rates (Smail 2002). This factor will transpire in most of the developing regions in Asia, South America, and Africa where the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) does not match the current population trends. Current statistics indicate that only “about 20% of the current world population (about 1.2 billion people) could be said to have an ‘adequate’ standard of living” (Bloom 2011).

Most of these people are only found in select regions of the world such as Europe, Japan, and North America where population growth is relatively slower. The wastefulness that is associated with developed nations is important to the balance between resources and population growth. Consequently, if the developing nations engage in these levels of wastefulness, Malthus’ predictions about unsustainable resources might be realized (Knox & Marston 2014).

It is important to note that so far the world has successfully avoided the disaster that was predicted by Malthus in the late 1700s through simple adaptations. For example, when the population of the world doubled between 1800 and 1900, people found ways through which to produce more and control their reproduction rates. This adaptation is expected to continue in future and people will successfully avoid imminent failure of vital systems.

However, the capacity of the globe remains constant. Even though individuals might find a way to maximize the available resources, the resources themselves remain constant. One economist notes that “the idea that improved know-how and voluntary fertility reduction can sustain a high, indeed rising, level of incomes for the world remains correct, but only if future technology enables us to economize on natural capital rather than finding ever more clever ways to deplete it more cheaply and rapidly” (Hanlon 2006). Lack of innovativeness could lead to an imbalance of resources that resonates with Malthus’ predictions.

The adaptation of the human race negates the probability that the human population would face a sudden and an abrupt end as Malthus predicted. Malthus was primarily wrong when he assumed that populations would keep growing as prosperity increased. Recent trends indicate that regions that have reached a state of success have also experienced a state of demographic transformation. This state occurs when “economic development brings greater prosperity and both birth and death rates to drop and population growth eventually starts to slow” (Ehrlich & Ehrlich 2013).

Furthermore, population jolts are only occasioned by a lack of adaptation between birth rates and death rates. Overall, Malthus had not envisioned advances in public health, birth control methods, urbanization, and other modern trends. All these factors make his predictions about impending doom inaccurate.

History is one of the factors that offer comfort when considering Malthus’ simplistic predictions on population and resources. The population threshold that the scholar had predicted was realized in the 1900s and since then there have been few concerns about earth’s ability to sustain its inhabitants. Growth of the population race has mostly been exponential. The only cause for concern when it comes to Malthus’ predictions is the need for higher living standards among various demographics. However, the proposal that growth often leads to problems has been proven wrong over the years. In future, the ability to adapt and innovate holds the key to the fortunes of the human population.

References

Azariadis, C & Drazen, A 2000, “Threshold externalities in economic development”, The Quarterly Journal of Economics, vol. 3, no. 4, pp. 501-526. Web.

Bloom, D 2011, “7 Billion and counting”, Science, vol. 333, no. 6042, pp. 562-569. Web.

Cohen, J 2005, “How many people can the earth support?”, The Sciences, vol. 35, no. 6, pp. 18-23. Web.

Ehrlich, P & Ehrlich, H 2013, “Can a collapse of global civilization be avoided?”, Biological Sciences, vol. 280, no. 1754, pp. 2012-2845. Web.

Hanlon, J 2006, “Population, growth, and economic development in low income countries”, American Journal of Public Health and the Nations Health, vol. 50, no. 2, pp. 268-269. Web.

Holdren, J & Ehrlich, R 2004, “Human population and the global environment: Population growth, rising per capita material consumption, and disruptive technologies have made civilization a global ecological force”, American Scientist, vol. 62, no. 3, pp. 282-292. Web.

Knox, P & Marston, A 2014, Human geography: Places and regions in global context, Pearson, Boston. Web.

Smail, J 2002, “Remembering Malthus: A preliminary argument for a significant reduction in global human numbers”, American Journal of Physical Anthropology, vol. 118, no. 3, pp. 292-297. Web.

Somerville, M, Essex, J, & Le Billon, P 2014, “The ‘global food crisis’ and the geopolitics of food security”, Geopolitics, vol. 19, no. 2, pp. 239-265. Web.

Wealth, C. 2008, Economics for a crowded planet, Allen Lane, London. Web.

Heterogeneity

Latinos are a diverse population with different national origins. However, the greatest Latino group living in the U.S is of the Mexican origin. The culture and ethnicity of this populace are diverse with variations existing in languages they speak. General understanding of these differences is greatly important as commonalities are also identified (Furman, Negi, Iwamoto, Rowan, Shukraft, & Gragg, 2009).

The service providers should understand and make diverse cultures comprehend the importance of social coexistence. Individuals should appreciate other people’s culture and major on commonalities.

Migration

Tran’s migrants continuously move to different places over time. This results in nonresidential base. This exposes them to poverty and long working hours as well as discrimination. The Trans migrants should be content with a range of psychological stressors that act as powerful multipliers (Pries, 2004). The pay for the working class should be improved to encourage them settle and alleviate poverty in the Latino population.

Acculturation

This refers to the change that is experienced following being in contact with other cultures. As such, professionals should take it into consideration when providing services to the Latinos. The act leads to changes in behavior, language, values and knowledge. The cultural orientation to various cultures should be well understood so that the practitioners can be able to provide services to the population (Torres & Rollock, 2004).

Health Disparities

It is considered true that nonwhite population in the U.S may not at times receive health services as required. The minority groups also avoid seeking the services and instead seek help from local informal facilities. Miscommunication and misconceptions between clients that may lead to confusion should, therefore, be reduced so that everyone is subjected to equal rights for health issues.

Latinos misconception that they are not being treated fairly as the whites should be eliminated and they should be encouraged to continue seeking medical facilities when in need.

Social Stigma

Welfare programs instilled address personal responsibility and individualism. The existing oppression is not given due consideration. This makes the systems to overlook family needs and other social concerns. Language is also a barrier that makes most Latinos fail to secure jobs.

For those who do, they must be able to speak English or have translators. Many children are also taken into custody at an increasing rate than children from the white community.

To overcome social problems, the social service agencies should recruit Spanish speaking service providers to assist in language disparity issues. Different values from the cultures should be aligned positively for the social wellbeing (Prelow & Loukas, 2003).

References

Furman, R., Negi, N., Iwamoto, D., Rowan, D., Shukraft, A., & Gragg, J. (2009). Social work practice with Latinos: Key issues for social workers. Social Work, 54(2), 167-174.

Prelow, H., & Loukas, A. (2003). The role of resource, protective, and risk factors on academic achievement-related outcomes of economically disadvantaged Latino youth. Journal of Community Psychology, 31(5), 513–529.

Pries, L. (2004). Determining the causes and durability of transnational labor migration between Mexico and the United States: Some empirical findings. International Migration, 42 (2), 3-39.

Roberts, S., Lawson, R., & Nicholls, J. (2006). Generating regional-scale improvements in SME corporate responsibility performance: Lessons from responsibility Northwest. Journal of Business Ethics, 67(3), 275-286.

Torres, L., & Rollock, D. (2004). Acculturative distress among Hispanics: The role of acculturation, coping, and intercultural competence. Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, 32(1), 155–167.

Introduction

One of the great accomplishments of the 20^th century is improvement in life expectancy. For instance, demographic figures indicate that life expectancy in America has increased from 45 years in the early 1900s to 75.6 in the year 2004 (Feldstein 23). Nevertheless, improved life expectancy joint with decreasing birth rates is becoming a major concern in today’s society.

Across the globe, the population is ageing. The situation is being experienced at a time when the number of people required in the workforce is increasing raising fears over its impacts to the society (Firth 56). As such, diverse age groups have dissimilar desires and productive capabilities. Therefore, countries’ social, economic, political, and environmental features will vary as their population ages.

Social

Economic

Political

Environmental

Works Cited

Feldstein, Martin. The Effects Of The Ageing European Population On Economic Growth And Budgets. Cambridge, Mass.: National Bureau of Economic Research, 2006. Print.

Firth, Lisa. An Ageing Population. Cambridge: Independence, 2008. Print.

Harper, Sarah. “Editorial: Social Security In An Ageing World”. Population Ageing 2.1-2 (2009): 1-4. Print.

Jones, Gavin. “Population Ageing In Asia and Its Implications For Mobility”. Population Ageing 1.1 (2008): 31-49. Print

Kaiser, Angelika. “A Review Of Longitudinal Datasets On Ageing”. Population Ageing 6.1-2 (2013): 5-27. Print.

Onofri, Paolo. The Economics of An Ageing Population. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Pub., 2004. Print.

Introduction

Population aging is becoming a more prominent global demographic trend affecting every person and countries. Dorfman, Richard and David (2008) observe globally, “the population of older persons is on the increase at a rate of 2.6 percent per year, significantly faster than the population as a whole, which is increasing at 1.2 percent per year.” The older population is expected to continue growing more rapidly than the population in other age groups.

Statistically, in developed countries more than a fifth of their population is aged 60 years and above and it is estimated that by the year 2050 approximately a third of the populace in the developed countries would be aged over 60 years.

A steady increase of the older age bracket is foreseen in many industrialized developed countries such as the United States. This is profound in the United States due to the decline in fertility levels begins relatively early and as a consequence, population increase is witnessed among the elderly (Federal Interagency Forum on Aging Related Statistics 2006).

These population structures are constantly changing due to the frequency of migration and immigration witnessed among the populace. This constant change is as a result of changes in mortality or fertility factors.

The older population will continue to grow overwhelmingly if the number of the current birth rate that is associated with the preceding one reduces due to fertility drop hence dropping the number of the youngest age sets. Such a huge population of older persons and rapid pervasion of aging will undoubtedly have alarming challenges to the social and economic development of the country.

The impact of these demographic changes brought about by the increase of elderly people, will affect the socio-economic factors within a country, including taxing policies and the distribution of economic resources, “labor markets, economic development, investment and consumption rates, pensions, savings, property and care from one age group to another and it could also have dire consequences on the provision of healthcare services” (Dorfman, Richard & David 2008).

Some of the other vital issues that the population aging will keep on affecting include housing, immigration, living arrangements and the relations composition.

The implication of population ageing

According to Kinsella, Kevin and Wan (2009), “the shift in age structure in relation to population aging has a profound impact on a range of economic, political and social process for example; the intergenerational of social support which is vital for the well being of both the young and the old.” This can be helpful to societies where provision of care within the family becomes extremely difficult as family size decreases and women, who are usually the main caregivers, are engaged in employment outside the home.

Population aging presents unique challenges that also force public institutions to operate within a dynamic culture that allows them to smoothly adapt to changes that occur in the population structures as a result of aging. In developed countries, the rapid increase in the number of senior citizens has forced the government and society to create more social systems than seen before to be able to cater and provide support able to cope with this rapid increase of senior citizens.

For example, the United States social security system has been forced to make radical modifications to its existing social security system so as to avert crisis also be ready for any potential threats to the public security (Dorfman, Richard & David 2008).

The global economic and monetary crisis that began in 2007 and stretched out during 2008 and 2009 resulted in reductions in value of pension funds in many countries worldwide. Consequently, the rate of retirement savings by individuals has substantially reduced. This substantial reduction is attributable to an increase in the old population, and the need for government to provide medical care for the old. As a result, the circumstances are likely to push government into demanding more from the working-age population.

This can be either in the form of levying of higher taxes or other contributions, in an attempt to maintain a stable flow of benefits to the older population through the social security system put in place. For instance, population aging has led to tax increases on the young population and a decrease of the potential support ratio.

This means that a rise in old-age dependency ratio will be inevitable, for this reason, indications that societies that have a constantly increasing number of beneficiaries of health and pension systems for persons above 65 years will be massive borrowers of donor funds from the World Bank.

Later retirement ages can also be caused by a decrease in the younger population as a result, making the old to retire at very late stages as the effective age of retirement varies significantly amongst different populations (Kinsella, Kevin & Wan 2009).

Countries that have high per capita incomes, older persons are required to retire early and therefore this leaves a vacuum where lower labor force participation rates at older ages are observed. These may become essential so as to uphold the Pay-As-You-Go public retirement plans for instance “Medicare” and “Social Security.”

Lower cost-of-living adjustments or housing

Population aging influences family composition and living arrangements for older persons, including familial co-residence and independent living, which has had significant impact on family support in developed countries, for example the United States. Also there has been an increase in numbers of elderly people living in old couple homes (Dorfman, Richard & David 2008).

This can greatly be attributed to the rapid economic growth, better living conditions, more migration of younger people to rural areas and the increasing desire of children and old parents to have a more independent life.

The benefit of changing living arrangements for the aged can take pleasure in a more self-sufficient life; however the demerits of this is that the elderly age will require more daily care and the lack of community services hindering them from getting the care they need. As a result, government policies that deal with this will be required to take into consideration the varying needs of the elderly in the society and to extend community services and long term care system in advance to them.

Healthcare

Population aging will have an impact in the increase of medical and health care expenditures. As life expectancy continues to rise, the number of people in the older age bracket will increase as well, resulting in a greater strain on the United States’ health care system.

Therefore, the implications of the changing demographics have changed healthcare systems along with the increased number of individuals aged above 65 years, which will potentially lead to increased healthcare costs (Kinsella, Kevin & Wan 2009). As the population ages the pervasiveness of health issues associated with old age, such as physical disabilities, disease vulnerability and chronic ailments are projected to raise significantly (Turnbull, 2009).

Health care is the main factor that is affected by the changing age formation of the people in favor of older age groups. As such, the chronic conditions that are associated with aging pose the potential for increased healthcare costs as longevity increases due to the rising medical costs and increase in demands for health services since the older people are more vulnerable to various diseases (Turnbull, 2009).

The government at national level should take crucial measures to make a significant financial commitment for the provision of medical care to the older population, in order to offset the economic status and needs of the elderly and their families

However, when a proportion of older persons in the total population increases rapidly over a short period the socio-economic conditions may be improved if the rate of the older population increases while the younger population will be forced to shoulder the extra cost. Also the government will need to support the implementation of the changes on housing policy and the communities working together to meet the needs of older citizens.

The frail elderly may need to have their homes modified to make them safer. To ensure the continued health and nutritional needs of our elderly are taken care of, new welfare program may need to be designed as the demographic aging and the changing needs of aging populations that have posed various challenges to the tight budgets and limited human resources (William 2007).

Social services

The economic conditions of a country would have the greatest influence on the expenditures on social services; it could affect the demand of social services by the demographic factors of the country (Turnbull 2009).

All public social security schemes in the developed countries have the Pay-As-You-Go schemes, which are publicly managed and financed through government taxes contributed by the employees and the employers. In addition, all cases cannot afford a sustainable living for the recipients as many countries have made efforts in establishing non-contributory pension schemes, which could provide a basic pension to those who are not within the outreach of formal schemes.

A poor economic climate in a country would lead to a rise in the level of unemployment which would lead to a rise in the number of persons on income assistance. Also as the population increases there would be an increase in the demand for social services irrespective of economic conditions. As a result the younger population will be forced to pay high charges on the tax imposed to them so that the government will cover the high cost of social services.

Recommendations

The aging of the population is certainly a global phenomenon that requires a worldwide synchronization of national and local actions where the population aging is already well underway and the majority of developed countries have now reached a unique stage where the largest percentage of population belongs to the economically active age-groups of between 15 and 64 years of age.

Some of the viable ways that would reduce negative consequences of population aging are increasing collaboration between the governments and thus plummeting socioeconomic and political tribulations that come about as a result of population aging.

This may be easily achieved through promoting active and healthy lifestyles, family and immigration policies, pushing up the retirement age or at least making sure that people retire at an older age, and restructuring of social security systems. The objective of this is to attain economic growth in the country in a way that senior citizens can be economically empowered even in their old age to lead decent lives.

In order to control the increase in population growth the government should try to get money in form of savings or pension scheme from the older population while they are still working by having a future plan to ensure that the government would not strain in the provision of resources in the future and the young population will not be taxed heavily.

An analysis of the health conditions as well as the healthcare situation has confirmed that in matters concerning healthcare, the country will need to follow the global standards that are concerned with lifestyle-related diseases.

Consequently, the health condition of aging individuals will gradually improve since the younger generation are less vulnerable to diseases given the changing lifestyles and adopting a healthier lifestyle. Older people can as well lead good, proactive, healthy comfortable lifestyles anticipating an advanced age only if they consult with medical experts and understand how they can age gracefully by even using anti-aging techniques that are medically proven.

Conclusion

The change in age makeup with population aging has a great impact to the country in terms of financial, political and community process. For example, the intergenerational social support that is crucial for the well being of both the young and the old. This can be helpful to societies where provision of care within the family becomes extremely difficult as family size decreases and women, who are usually the main caregivers, are engaged in employment outside the home location.

Due time constraints that are associated with planning to cater for aging, becomes the responsibility of the government to quickly set up mechanisms within developing countries to set up mechanisms that will help these countries cope with the numerous challenges associated with having a large aging population.

In a country with a population consisting mainly of individuals who are in the elderly age bracket, more social services would need to be put in place to cater for the needs of the elderly.

The increasing number of the elderly in the countryside has also led to the increasing migration of the younger population to urban areas and therefore the government should put into consideration the younger population during policy making, thus be more supportive of rural community services delivery in instances such as provision of medical care services.

In addition, there will be a steady increase of the older age group in many industrialized countries especially in developed countries like the United States where their fertility rate begins declining relatively early resulting in a population increase of the elderly people.

These population structures change because people either die or migrate to other regions. The older population will continue growing if the current population consisting of younger people reduces due to infertility that reduces the number of births and future younger generations.

In addition, the demographic changes will influence several socio-economic factors, such as taxing policies, social patterns, labor market, economic development, investments and consumption, pension schemes and distribution of economic resources. Other factors that the aging population will continue to affect are housing and migration, living arrangements and the family composition.

References

Dorfman, M. Richard, H. & David, A. R. (2008). The Financial Crisis and Mandatory Pension Systems in Developing Countries. Pension Reform Primer Note, The World Bank, Washington, D.C.

Federal Interagency Forum on Aging Related Statistics (2006). Older Americans 2006: Key Indicators of Well-Being. Washington, D.C: Federal Interagency Forum on Aging Related Statistics.

Kinsella, A. Kevin, J & Wan, H. (2008). An Aging World: 2008, U.S. Census Bureau, International Population Reports, P95/09-1. Washington: D.C: U.S. Government Printing Office.

Turnbull, G. K., (2009). Urban Growth Controls: Transitional Dynamics of Development Fees and Growth Boundaries. Journal of Urban Economics, 45-69.

William B., (2007). Rural Medicare Beneficiaries’ Use of Rural and Urban Hospitals. The Journal of Rural Health 1, 1-102.

Cause

China

When considering the factors that predetermined the rapid and practically uncontrollable population growth in China (0.43% in 2016 according to the CIA data (“Population Growth Rate” CIA.gov)), one must mention the fact that the living standards have increased significantly over the past few decades (Lucas 2). As a result, the rates of infant mortality are very low, and life expectancy is outstandingly high in the state. The issue of the living standards increases, in its turn, revolved around the rise in the number of immigrants in China that was due to the numerous job offerings.

Furthermore, apart from a rapid increase in the number of immigrants to the state, the improved living conditions triggered an increase in the life expectancy levels. Despite the fact that a law prohibiting one-third of Chinese families from having more than one child was passed in 1979 (“India” CIA.gov), the population growth rates continue to rise, therefore, becoming a reason for understandable concern among the authorities.

India

Although a substantial part of the Indian population cannot enjoy high living standards, the population growth rates are very high in the identified area as well. However, the reasons for the identified phenomenon are the exact opposite of the ones that cause population growth in China. Particularly, the high poverty rates and the lack of literacy among a large number of people compel them to have as many family members as possible to increase the income rates.

Furthermore, the cultural tradition, which encourages Indian people to marry at a relatively young age and produce as many male children as possible, evidently has its toll on the population growth level. Finally, the lack of literacy mentioned above also implies that a lot of Indian people are unaware of the essential concepts of contraception; consequently, the tools for avoiding pregnancy and controlling childbirth are used rarely. The factors listed above affect the population growth levels greatly, seeing how rapid the increase thereof in India is. According to the official statistical data, in 2016, the identified index amounted to 1.19% (“India” CIA.gov), which is nearly three times as high as in China.

Discussion

It is quite spectacular that, despite the obvious differences in the situations observed in China and India, the growth rates in both states increases exponentially every year. Indeed, seeing that there has been an improvement in the living conditions in China, which is the exact opposite of the situation in India, one may assume that the population growth rates in the two states should be in inverse proportion to each other.

However, the identified phenomenon can be explained by the fact that, in both cases, the subject matter is affected by the specifics of the local culture and economy to a considerable extent. The economic issues and the political choices made by the state authorities must be listed among the basic reasons for the growth rates to be nearly equally high. For instance, in China, the creation of a range of job opportunities, especially for the lower class citizens, can be viewed as the effect of economic growth (“Population Growth Rate” CIA.gov)).

Impact

The effects of the increase in the population rates, however, are far from being beneficial for either of the states. Initially, the rise in the number of people residing in the state allowed for filling in the vacancies and, therefore, creating the environment in which economic growth could occur due to the increase in the efficacy of both private and public companies. The enhancement of the production processes, particularly the quantity and the quality of the goods, served as the means of increasing GDP and GNP, thus, building the pathway to economic prosperity.

However, the oversaturation of the job market is bound to lead to a drastic change, i.e., the reduction in the number of job opportunities and the following rise in the unemployment rates. With most of the positions for low- and middle-paid jobs being taken by immigrants, the Chinese may face the lack of jobs in the high-payment area. Consequently, the number of candidates per each vacancy in the low-paid job department will increase, yet the Chinese candidates are likely to have trouble competing with immigrants in the identified area. Therefore, unemployment and the subsequent reduction in the quality of life for a vast amount of the local population should be considered the primary effect of the consistent population growth. Additionally, educational opportunities will be restricted to a large number of people once the population reaches a critical point of growth.

China

Furthermore, the issue of food shortage should be brought up as one of the possible effects of overpopulation in China. Additionally, there is a high probability that, with the increase in population rates, the pollution levels will explode. Despite the fact that the state policies on ecology are rather rigid, the production processes affect the environment significantly since waste management strategies are designed very poorly, and the emissions produced by the corresponding companies have an increasingly large effect on the ecosystem and its inhabitants, including not only people but also flora and fauna. The specified issue, in fact, can be connected to the possibility of food deficiency. With the changes in habitats, they will become unsustainable, and a range of species will become extinct, among which there might be essential sources for food (Hualou and Yansui 1280).

India

For India, the absence of control measures aimed at restricting the population growth rates will also imply rather unfavorable effects. As stressed above, it will be impossible to control employment levels in the state; consequently, the poverty issue will become even more topical and difficult to address. The exploitation of labor force has to be viewed as another threat that the lack of control over the population growth rates will entail. Once the supply becomes times greater than the demand in the labor market due to the rise in the population number and, therefore, the number of candidates per position, employers will most likely use the opportunity to reduce benefits for the people that they hire, including the salary, the workplace conditions, etc. Consequently, the staff will be mistreated by the employers and deprived of a range of financial opportunities, not to mention the ones related to their professional development and career. Finally, the problems associated with the income distribution have to be mentioned. With the increase in the number of residents, the welfare of its citizens is likely to shrink. As a result, the scenario in which the middle class will become nonexistent may be a possible course of economic and social development of the state (Kaushal and Varghese 1478).

Population Growth Management

Needless to say, the problems listed above pose a significant threat to the well-being of the people living in India and China. Therefore, the means of population growth management will have to be introduced to the social systems of the states. Promoting awareness about the tools for carrying out family planning procedures could be a possible solution to the issue. The population of India and China needs to be educated about the methods of controlling birth and planning their family.

Furthermore, a compromise between the culture of the residents and the concept of family planning must be viewed as an option. As stressed above, for some people, especially as far as the Indian culture is concerned, the very idea of family planning may be deemed as inappropriate. Thus, it will be necessary to locate the solution that will help the target audiences accept the concept of family planning and, therefore, contribute to a reduction in the population growth rates.

Naturally, it is expected that educating the target audiences about the importance of family planning, the means of executing it, and the possibility of their beliefs and the principles of family planning to coexist will take a significant amount of time. Differently put, it may take a while before the effects become visible. However, even creating the basis for the further prevention of an exponential population growth is crucial for both China and India at present. As soon as the appropriate strategy involving the management of the cultural issue and the provision of the related inform information to the target audiences is designed, a massive improvement for both India and China can be expected.

Works Cited

Hualou, Long, and Liu Yansui. “A Brief Background to Rural Restructuring in China: A Forthcoming Special Issue of Journal of Rural Studies.” Journal of Geographic Science, vol. 25, no. 10, 2015, pp. 1279-1280.

“India.”CIA.gov, 2016, Web.

Kaushal, Rajendra Kumar, and George K Varghese. “Municipal Solid Waste Management in India-Current State and Future Challenges: A Review.” International Journal of Engineering Science and Technology (IJEST), vol. 4, no. 4, 2012, pp. 1473-1489.

Lucas, Robert E. B. Internal Migration in Developing Economies: An Overview. KNOMAD, 2015, Web.

“Population Growth Rate.” CIA.gov, 2016, Web.

Human population growth problem is a double-sided sword. On the one hand, a state needs competent employees, efficient workers, confident leaders and fearless warriors to sustain its standards of living and be highly valued among the rest of the countries of the world.

On the other hand, exponential population growth leads to poverty and unemployment, and nowhere is it nearly as prominent as in the states where artificial contraception is prohibited. Since religious controversies often stand in the way of adopting birth-controlling strategies, which results in a number of people living beyond the poverty line, a reasonable compromise between the state policy on birth control and the needs of the population must be reached.

Philippines are the most graphic example of the exponential population growth phenomenon. According to the information provided by AIJazeeraEnglish, in Philippines, banning artificial contraceptives has led to a “population explosion” (AIJazeeraEnglish 01:01). With around two million babies born every year, the rates of poverty have hit the roof.

Since Catholicism has been established as an official religion in the state, the issue of contraception or, worse yet, abortion is never considered a possibility. The given example shows that, to control population growth, one must first re-evaluate the priorities of the state and bring the influence of religion down a few notches.

Another efficient means of controlling the population growth and keeping it within the required boundaries is considering the dispersion of the population. Since at present, most people tend to escape from countryside to industrialized regions, such as cities, which leads to the overpopulation of the latter, a more reasonable policy towards small towns and villages should be considered (Schaefer 446).

For example, there is no secret that in most states, countryside rarely has much to offer to its dwellers in terms of education, employment and, for that matter, the means for decent life. As a result, people flock in cities, overcrowding them and creating the premises for an exponential population growth. Hence, it is more than reasonable to suggest that additional means of improving the standards of life in rural areas should be offered in order to control the growth of population within cities.

Migration seems to be another important factor that defines the rates of population growth. However, it should also be taken into account that legal migrants contribute to the state development and progress, which means that banning immigration completely will leave a state out of numerous opportunities. Therefore, providing birth control among immigrants as well as among the citizens of the state can be viewed as a possible solution.

Hence, the problem of birth control medicine and abortions is brought up once again. In the light of the aforementioned issues, birth control is essential. It is also noteworthy that the people migrating from a different state might also have religious prejudice against birth control; hence, a major literacy campaign on the issues related to birth control must be carried out.

Therefore, it must be admitted that there are many efficient means to control the growth of population, and the choice of the method is defined by the goals of the state government. While some states prefer to legalize abortions so that people could make a choice between giving birth to a child and continuing living on their own, it is still clear that for the states where social and religious prospects on abortions collide, the given solution is not a way out. Thus, birth control medicine seems the most reasonable solution.

Works Cited

AIJazeeraEnglish. “People and Power.” YouTube. 19 Nov. 2011. Web.

Schaefer, Richard T. (2012). “Population, Communities and Urbanization.” Sociology (13^th ed.). New York City, NY: McGraw-Hill. 446–471. Print.