Population and Development

The demographic transition and its related effects of population growth, fertility decline and ageing populations are fraught with controversy. When discussed in relation to the global south and the modern project of development, the questions and answers become more problematic.

Population and Development offers an expert guide on the demographic transition, from its origins in Enlightenment Europe through to the rest of the world. Tim Dyson examines how, while the phenomenon continues to cause unsustainable population growth with serious economic and environmental implications, its processes have underlain previous periods of sustained economic growth, helped to liberate women from the domestic domain, and contributed greatly to the rise of modern democracy. This accessible yet scholarly analysis will enable any student or expert in development studies to understand complex and vital demographic theory.

Table of Contents

Part I Introduction
1. Introduction
2. The Demographic Transition-Origins, Processes, Effects
3. World Population and the Transition
Part II The Processes of the Demographic Transition
4. The Demographic Transition-Facts and Theory
5. Urbanization and the Transition
Part III. The Effects of the Demographic Transition
6. Social Effects of the Transition
7. Economic and Political Effects
Part IV. Conclusion
8. Conclusions, Discussion, the Future
Appendix: Remarks on Data and Approach
Bibliography
Index

About the Author:

Tim Dyson is Professor of Population Studies at the London School of Economics. He was educated in England and Canada, and has held visiting positions at the Australian National University in Canberra, the International Institute of Population Sciences in Mumbai, and the American University of Beirut. His research interests include world food and agricultural prospects, the causes and consequences of famines, the demographic basis of urban growth and urbanization, climate change and global warming, the demography and epidemiology of HIV/AIDS, and the past, present and future population of the Indian subcontinent. He is a past President of the British Society for Population Studies and was elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 2001.