Transcript PRESENTATION NAME

Birth and Death Rates:
Factors of Influence

There are a number of factors that determine birth rates.

For instance, the number of women in the total
population determines how many births will occur in a
country over a given time period.

The range in ages for the female population is also a
factor in how high the birth rate figures may be for a
country.

Generally women from the ages of 15 through to 49 can
bear children. Therefore, a country’s population
containing more women in this age category is likely to
produce more children than a population with more
women either too young or too old to have children.

Culture and religion are examples of other
factors that are strong determinants of birth
rates.

There are cultures and religions that encourage
and favour larger families while there are others
who prefer and promote smaller family sizes.

In some countries and cultures, the economic
status and vibrancy of a family is directly linked
to the number of children.

Families with low income tend to have more
children in order to bring more income into the
family.

Therefore, a family’s low income can mean
that there is no money for birth control and
access to family planning.

Medical conditions and the
standard of heath care can
significantly impact and be tied
to more infant deaths and
childhood deaths in the
developing world.

As a result of the uncertainty as
to how many children might
survive, many women have
more children in the hopes that
some will survive to reach
maturity.

The level of education a woman has
and their economic status affect birth
rates as well.

In societies where women are not
treated as equals to men, women
generally receive less education and
have little input in decision making,
including decisions about pregnancy.

In many developing nations the
husband determines and/or dictates
the size of the family and the number of
offspring.
In many
countries,
such as Mali,
women
require their
husbands’
written
permission
before they
can buy
contraceptive
supplies. What
do you think
the purpose is
of the law?
TINGA
SOW
MOTHER’S
GENERATION
Education
no formal
education
no formal
education
Marriage
at a young age (16)
& only wife of
husband
likely at a
young age &
one of four
wives
Children
9 (two died)
30 children in
the household
from 4 different
wives (likely
some children
died)
Birth
Control
available with
husband’s
permission
unavailable
Husband
unable to
adequately
provide
able to
provide for
wives and
children
Q. 17 on page 173
Compare the
circumstances of
Sow’s life with those
of women in her
mother’s generation.
Identify the likely
similarities and
differences in a chart.
What has not
changed
significantly? Why
not?
What brought about
the changes in Sow’s
life?
The lack of education
and the early age of
marriage – combined
with, the fear of infant
mortality very poor
economic conditions
that result in the need for
children to work to help
support the household,
and cultural traditions of
high fertility – have all
contributed to high
fertility rates.

The main changes in
Sow’s life compared to
her mother’s have been
brought about by both
an economic situation
that requires her to seek
employment to
supplement her
husband’s limited wages
and the possibility of birth
control, which has
allowed her to hold down
a job.


In societies where women become more
educated, their status in society generally
improves and tends to rise – the direct result
leading to autonomy, independence and the
ability to thrive against adversity.

Spending more time in school not only helps
women become more literate and more apt
to locate jobs and improve economic
fortune, but potentially develop
technological capabilities that can lead to
more skill sets and better chances for work in
the long-term.

Women in these circumstances will often have more rights
to make their own choices and be more involved in the
decision making process in regards to the family. They are
better able to express their opinions, but it also delays
marriage and the start of child-bearing.

Educated women in the developing world are more likely
to find employment outside the home, and will probably
lead to having a smaller family where there are fewer
children to care and provide for.

This allows for an increasing presence for women to serve
in various roles that increases the status of women and to
potentially improve their social standing and to elevate
them into positions that may fast track them into valuable
leadership roles.
Region
Birth Rate
Death Rate
RNI
Doubling
Time
WORLD
23
9
1.4
50
AFRICA
40
15
2.5
28
NORTH
AMERICA
11
8
0.6
117
ASIA
23
8
1.5
47
LATIN
AMERICA
25
7
1.8
39
EUROPE
10
11
-0.1
-700
 Government
population policies also
impact birth rates.
 While
most countries do not have laws
pertaining to fertility (i.e. number of
children that a man and woman can
have), some, however, have
comprehensive population-control
programs that dictate the number of
children a couple may have.
Q. 13
on page 173
Make a list of
at least eight
factors that
contribute to a
high birth rate.
 There
are many factors
that contribute to high
birth rates.
What do you think
they include?
Q. 13
on page
173
Make a list
of at least
eight
factors that
contribute
to a high
birth rate.
 There
are many factors that
contribute to high birth
rates. They include:






Lack of birth control
Lack of good-quality birth control
Lack of accessibility to birth control
Lack of education, particularly
among women
Government population policies
that promote high fertility-rates
Strong influence from religious
leaders who either prohibit the use
of birth control or encourage high
fertility rates
Q. 13
on page
173
 There
are many factors that
contribute to high birth
rates. They include:
Make a list
of at least  High infant mortality rates
 High percentage of rural
eight
population or low percentage of
factors that
urban population
contribute
to a high  The end of a military conflict
birth rate.  Limited economic opportunities for
women
 Cultural and societal expectations
 Lack of government pension plans

There are a wide range of possibilities
that impact and help determine
mortality rates, including the
accessibility, affordability and
availability of health services and
medical facilities.

Availability to medical services is
determined not only by the number
of health care professionals and
treatment facilities, but also by their
spatial distribution (i.e. where are
they located and how far from
population bases).

As medical services become more available to
a population the death rate decreases.

Especially for children and young adults , the
majority of deaths are caused by health
problems that are very easy and inexpensive to
treat.

In may circumstances many deaths could be
avoided in the developing world with improved
sanitation and vaccination programs.
Something so simple as these two things could
easily maintain better health and climate a
major cause of death.
Besides access to health care, several other factors affect death rates:

Education – Women are usually the principal
caregivers of the young, their education will
help them maintain their children's health as
well as their own.

Availability of food and clean water

The level of economic development

Civil unrest and warring fractions

Environmental and natural disasters

Country’s fertility rate – a large population of
babies may increase the general death rate. In
addition, child-bearing in a developing country
can be dangerous. The more children a woman
has, the greater the chance she will have of
dying in childbirth from complications.


High infant mortality rates
usually result in high
fertility rates because of
parental foresight.
Parents who believe that
some of their children will
die often have more
children to ensure they
end up with the number
of adult offspring they
desire.
In developing
countries adult
children often
provide the
necessary means
of support after the
parents are unable
to continue
working.

How can a high birth rate lead
to a high mortality rate?
A high fertility rate may lead to
elevated infant mortality rates.
 If parents are having many children
it is possible that they may not be
able to provide all of them with
good quality care because of a lack
of time, a weakened physical state
from frequent pregnancies, or a lack
of financial resources.
 In a developing nation with limited
medical resources may have
problems providing for necessary
care.
 A higher fertility rate could strain an
already stretched medical system.

After infant
health care
improves and
parents realize
that the vast
majority of
children will
survive to
maturity, fertility
levels will start to
decline.

How might a
crude death
rate in a
developed
country be just
as high as that
in a developing
nation?
Hint: Consider
the age
characteristics
of the countries

The reason for this is the much
lower average age of the
populations of a developing
nation.

The deaths of older people are
one of the main contributors to
a death rate.

There are many more children
in the developing world.

In a developing nation when
an older person dies, he or she
represents a small % of the
overall population.
 In
a more developed nation that the
average age is much higher because the
proportion of senior citizens is much
higher than in a developing nation.
 In
developed countries when seniors die
they represent a higher % of the total
population.
Q. 24
What changes
within Russian
society caused
the dramatic
changes in
that country in
terms of life
expectancy?