POPULATION THEORIES

The examination of differential fertility and mortality showed how little is known of the main
influences upon population growth. Consequently, theories of population growth have been
proposed, trying to explain the main influences, especially with respect to fertility.
Counts has classified these theories into three categories:
1. Biological
2. Cultural
3. Economic.

Biological Theories:
 Stress that the law regulating human population is basically the same as that regulating
the growth of plants and animals that demographic growth is not unique.

Cultural Theories of Population Growth:

 Emphasize the importance of mans character and culture is influencing his fertility
 Stress has been placed on the influence of desires for higher social and economic status
and for achieving luxuries and pleasures in life.
 Education and urbanization have also been invoked as determinants of fertility decline,
but these are certainly not universally true.
 Moreover, poverty cannot always be correlated with high fertility and wealth with low
fertility.

Economic theories of Population:

 Growth emphasizes the significance of economic relations in social change.
 There has been more or less general agreement that the demand for labor determines its
supply.
 Fluctuations in fertility migrations and geographical distribution of population are
therefore looked upon essentially as responses to the demand for labor.
Population growth and Investment Requirement:
 Population growth at a high rate accompanied by low growth of income leads to a high
rate of investment requirement. Thus, when the rate of growth of population is very high,
investment required would also be very high for maintaining the economic growth. This
will result in more and more pressure on the existing resources.
 The maladjustment between resources and population, if unfavorable because of high
population resource ratio, leads to population pressure
 This is so because population pressure is a function of ecological economic, social
cultural and historical variables Population pressure is the outcome of an interaction
among three variables e.g. resources population, and the exceptions pattern.
According to Mobogunje population pressure will occur under the following situations:
 When resources and population are low but expectations are high
 Resources and expectations are low but population is high and
 Where resources are low but population and expectations are high
 MALTHUSIAN THEORY OF POPULATION

The pre Malthusian theory of population was not systemic. Malthus was the first economist to
propound a systemic theory of population. Thomas Robert Malthus enunciated his views
regarding population in his famous book “Essay on the principle of Population” as it affects the
Future Improvement of Society.
 This theory describes the relationship between population growth and economic
development. This theory still survives, though with some different interpretations.
 Malthus pointed out that population increased at a much more rapid rate than did the
production of food, and, as such, it was useless to think of human prosperity.
 The gap between population growth and the increase in food supply barred, the
realization of the vision of prosperity of men.
 He said that the pressure of increasing
population on food supply will destroy
perfection and there would be human misery
 Malthus was severely criticized as a pessimist
 He collected the empirical data to support his
thesis Malthus got the second edition of his
book published in 1803 when he modified some
of his views expressed earlier but essentially his
original thesis stands.

Salient Features of Malthusian Theory:

1. There is a natural sex instinct in human beings
which can increase at a very fast rate.
Population increases in geometrical progression
(1,2,4,8,16,32,..) and if unchecked, doubles
itself every 25 years.
2. But food supply increases in a slow arithmetical
progression (1,2,3,4,5,6,...), due to the operation of diminishing returns based on the
supposition that the supply of land is inelastic.
3. Malthus also says that in course of time, the growth of population will outstrip the
increase in food outputs.
4. The power of population is indefinitely greater than the power in the earth to reproduce
subsistence for men , The imbalance between the increase in food supply of population
growth is shown by the following diagram:

Malthus suggested two types of checks:

1. Preventive checks:
The preventive checks are applied by men to control the birth rate through late marriage,
celibacy, moral restraint arid foresight. If people fail to check
2. Positive checks:
Positive checks operate in the form of misery vice, famine war, disease, pestilence floods and
other natural calamities which tend to reduce population, and there-by bring about a balance
between population growth and the growth of food supply
  Malthus positive checks are crude, and in civilized Society, preventive checks are always
in operation, In proportion as mankind rises above the conditions of the beasts,
population is restrained by the fear of wart rather than by want itself
 Malthus appealed to his countrymen to adopt preventive checks in order to. Avoid vice or
misery resulting from positive checks.
 The Malthusian theory of population can now be summarized

CRITICISM ON THE MALTHUSIAN DOCTRINE:

1. The operations of the law of diminishing returns can be postponed indefinitely.
2. The mathematical form of the theory is not correct. Empirical evidences do not
corroborate the rate of increase in food supply.
3. Malthus could not foresee the opening up .of new area He failed to perceive the
opening up of new areas.
4. Positive checks are not this to over-population: Natural calamities are not peculiar to
over-populated countries.
5. Every increase in population is not harmful: Malthus belief that every increase in
population is harmful is not correct lip to the optimum level an increase in population
should be welcomed, as it will benefit the county to increase its per capita income
rapidly.
6. Increase in population is the result of a decline in death rate: The Malthusian theory
is one-sided. It takes the increase in population as the of a rising birth rate, whereas
population has grown considerably the world over due to decline in death rate
7. Malthus held the poor people responsible for their misery: Malthus felt that the poor
people tried to increase their number faster Malthus said that the poor are themselves the
cause of their poverty.