Question

What is the demographic transition? What are the four stages of the demographic transition?

Answer 1

"Demographic Transition" is a model that describes population change over time. It refers to the transition from high birth and death rates, to lower birth and death rates as a country or state or region develops from a pre-industrial to an industrialized economic system.

The four stages to the demographic transition are as follows:

Stage 1: Pre-transition

Characterised by high birth rates, and high fluctuating death rates.

Population growth was kept low by Malthusian "preventative" (late age at marriage) and "positive" (famine, war) checks.

Stage 2: Early transition

During the early stages of the transition, the death rate starts to fall.

As birth rates remain high, the population grows rapidly.

Stage 3: Late transition

Birth rates start to decline and the rate of population growth decelerates.

Stage 4: Post-transition

Post-transitional societies are characterised by low birth and low death rates.