Global Population Distribution and Changes

Posted on Mar 5, 2024 in Geography

Estimated that by the 21st century, the world will have 12 billion inhabitants.Population distribution: The way in which people are spread across a given area.

1.1 Population density.

– Definition: Is the average number of people per Km2 (It is a way of measuring population distribution and shows whether an area is sparsely or densely populated.)

– Determined more by environmental factors (which make an area more or less attractive to settlers) than by economic development.

– The population density has very little to do with its level of economic development.

1.2 Factors affecting population density
Environmental and human factors affect the spread of people across the world.

– Attaching Settlement.
➢ Temperate climate, e.g., the UK
➢ Fertile land, e.g., the Bangladesh Delta
➢ Good supplies of natural resources, e.g., building resources.

– Factors discouraging settlement.
➢ Extreme climates, e.g., the Sahara Desert
➢ Mountainous or Highland areas, e.g., the Scottish Highlands.➢ Dense Vegetation, e.g., the Amazon

– Socioeconomic factors.
➢ Such as the availability of jobs.

– Political factors.
➢ Civil war

2. Natural population changes

▪ Population numbers change over time, influenced by births, death, and migration into or out of the area. Global population levels, having grown slowly for most of human history, are now rising.

How do pyramids change over time?

➢ A population pyramid that is very triangular shows a population with a high number of young dependants and a low life expectancy.

➢ A population pyramid that has fairly straight sides (more like a barrel) shows a population with a falling birth rate and a rising life expectancy.

Over time, as a country develops, the shape changes from triangular to barrel-like.

Places with an aging population and a very low birth rate would have a structure that looks like an upside-down pyramid.

3.2 Demographic transition models
Show population change over time and marked differences between LEDCs and MEDCs.

1. Total population is low but balanced due to high birth rates and high death rates

2. Total population rises as death rates fall due to improvements in health care and sanitation. Birth rates remain High.

3. Total population is still rising rapidly. The gap between birth and death rates narrows due to the availability of contraception and fewer children being needed to work

4. Total population is high, but it is balanced by a low birth rate and a low death rate. Birth control is widely available and there is a desire for smaller families.

5. Total population is high but going into decline due to an aging population. There is a continued desire for smaller families, with people opting to have children later in life.

4. Managing population change

Different countries face varying problems when attempting to manage population change.LEDCs have to manage rapid population growth. MEDCs have to manage slow or negative growth and an aging population.

4.1 Population growth in LEDCs
Most LEDCs are experiencing rapid population growths.

Most LEDCs are in stage 2 or 3 of the demographic transition model (means that they have falling death rates, due to improving health care, while birth rates remain high).

Causes of population growth in LEDCs

-Limited access to family planning services and education about contraception.

-Children are a valuable source of labor.
-Children can help to care for younger children.
-High rates of infant mortality (infant deaths) mean that women need to have many children to ensure that some survive.

-It may be culturally important to have a large family.

LEDCs have a high population-growth rate (they have many young dependants, and that causes problems):

-Young children need health care: immunizations. This is expensive for a country to provide

-Young people need to be educated: providing schools and teachers are expensive. Resources for lessons are difficult to access and costly to buy.

-In the future, more children will reach childbearing age, putting more pressure on the health service.

Governments in LEDCs and international bodies and charities are working to reduce birth rates and slow down rates of population growth.

4.2. Case study China: LEERLO EN LA PAGINA 8

4.3. Population change in MEDCs

Most MEDCs are in stage 4 of the demographic transition model – the population is high, but not growing. Some countries have a declining population and could be said to be entering stage 5 (the birth rate in their country has fallen below the death rate) Most MEDCs have a very low rate of natural increase.

The life expectancy in MEDCs is rising. This is due to:

Improvements in health care and medicine.
Improved knowledge about the importance of a balanced diet and regular exercise.
Improved living standards and quality of life.

Birth rates in MEDCs are falling as people choose to have smaller families later in life.

An aging population

To try to balance out an aging population, some countries adopt a pro-natalist policy.

4.4 Case study: Pro-natalist policy in France.
Many areas of Europe have a low fertility rate because of the following reasons:

▪ Contraception
▪ Women in careers
▪ Later marriages
▪ State benefits- couples don’t need children to help care for them when older.

The policies that were put in place to encourage three-children families were:

_a cash incentive of £675 monthly (nearly the minimum wage) for a mother to stay off work for one year following the birth of her third child.

_Large family card, giving large reductions on train fares.
_income tax based on the more children the less tax to pay

_three years paid parental leave, which can be used by mothers or fathers

_government-subsidized daycare for children under the age of three, and full-time school places for over threes paid for by the government.

This has resulted in mothers considering having children.

5. Migration.

Is the movement of people from one place to another.
The reasons for migration can be: economic, social, political, or environmental. Migration impacts on both the place left behind and on the place where migrants settle. Can be classified in:

▪ Internal migration: People migrate within the same place or region.
▪ International migration: People migrate from one country to another.

2 key migration terms:

-Emigration: when someone leaves a country

-Immigration: when someone enters a country.

5.1 Why do people migrate?

o Economic migration: Find work or follow a particular career path
o Social migration: Better quality of life or to be closer to family or friends.

A refugee: is someone who has left their home and does not have a new home to go to. Often refugees do not carry many possessions with them and do not have a clear idea of where they may finally settle.

5.2 Patterns of migration

The number of migrants a country receives is influenced by the country’s migration policy.
People are awarded points depending on their skills, previous income, and age. Migration laws are complex and change in different countries, even within the EU

5.3 Types of volunteer migration

1. Medical treatment: Around 60,000 people from the UK traveled abroad to receive

medical treatment. Cosmetic surgery, infertility treatment, and orthopedic treatment.
Making this choice does have problems – it can be harder to check that private doctors in other countries have the correct qualifications, and people may not be fully insured. Infections or superbugs may be brought back to the UK.

2. Competitive sport

3. Retirement migration

5.4 Impacts of migration- economic migrants.
Migration has an impact on the place that has been left behind as well on the place that is

being migrated to.

Different groups of people have different interests. In the case of economic migrants, look at the views of:

o The migrant
o The migrant’s family left behind.
o The government in the host country.o Other workers in the host country.

Economic migration is defined as the choice to move to improve the standard of living by gaining a better-paid job.

Dependents rely upon the economically active for economic support.
Many LEDCs have a high number of young dependants, whilst many MEDCs have a growing number of elderly dependants.

1. Evolution and distribution of global population.

Estimated that by the 21st century, the world will have 12 billion inhabitants.Population distribution: The way in which people are spread across a given area.

1.1 Population density.

Definition: Is the average number of people per Km2 (It is a way of measuring population distribution and shows whether an area is sparsely or densely populated.)

Determined more by environmental factors (which make an area more or less attractive to settlers) than by economic development.

The population density has very little to do with its level of economic development.

1.2 Factors affecting population density
Environmental and human factors affect the spread of people across the world.

Attaching Settlement.
➢ Temperate climate, e.g., the UK
➢ Fertile land, e.g., the Bangladesh Delta
➢ Good supplies of natural resources, e.g., building resources.

Factors discouraging settlement.
➢ Extreme climates, e.g., the Sahara Desert
➢ Mountainous or Highland areas, e.g., the Scottish Highlands.➢ Dense Vegetation, e.g., the Amazon

Socioeconomic factors.
➢ Such as the availability of jobs.

Political factors.
➢ Civil war