Birth Rates
Isaiah, Kasia, Vaynu, Joseph
As we explored in our analysis of literacy rates and birth rates and their association, high birth rates can lead to a number of problems in society. Overpopulation is hard to deal with, both as a world and for each government. To the end of improving the lives of their subjects and perhaps making their job easier, various governments have undergone efforts to change the birth rates of their countries. We investigated whether these efforts were successful or not, as they could be useful in the future when trying to limit overpopulation.
A prime example, perhaps the prime example, of a government limiting birth rate is found in the People’s Republic of China. In 1979, China instituted the One Child Policy, decreeing that each family would be limited to one child. Surprisingly, this policy had the opposite of the intended effect on the birth rate (births per 1000 people) of China in the years following its institution. While the rate was 17.82 in 1979, it had risen to 23.33 by 1987 and took until 1994 to fall below 1979’s rate. This is important, as it tells us that such catch-all policies with no efficient way of enforcement do not work, and are oppressive but ineffectual. Of course, China’s birth rate did eventually fall quite dramatically, but it was not the immediate change they likely were hoping for. Even so, the morality of China’s program is questionable, and the government has since rolled it back into a two-child policy.
For a more effective program, we must look to Iran. While the Shia fundamentalist group lead by Ayatollah Khomeini may not seem like the type to put in place birth restriction policies, they are a great example of extremely successful policies. Upon taking power in 1979, the birth rate in Iran was 43.75. 10 years later, after a program which involved heavy endorsement of condoms and vasectomies, Iran’s birth rate had fallen to 35.29, and has continued to fall to date, where it stands at 17.10, last recorded in 2015. From this, we can learn that birth control is a very effective means for reducing births, and may in fact be a solution for overpopulation. Of course, we should be cautious, as this steep decline in births could easily be the cause of another lurking variable or a combination of factors. However, this does suggest that population control that is not violent like Uzbekistan or overly oppressive like China can work.
Sources: https://www.babble.com/baby/10-astounding-population-laws-from-around-the-world/
This article gives 10 examples of countries which have either attempted to lower or raise birth rates, and thus populations through various measures.
data.worldbank.org
This website gives figures and graphs for various statistics for every country for which there exist figures. We obtained our data on birth rates from this resource.
Embed code for graph of birth rate data: <iframe src="https://data.worldbank.org/share/widget?contextual=default&indicators=SP.DYN.CBRT.IN&locations=IR-CN" width='450' height='300' frameBorder='0' scrolling="no" ></iframe>
A prime example, perhaps the prime example, of a government limiting birth rate is found in the People’s Republic of China. In 1979, China instituted the One Child Policy, decreeing that each family would be limited to one child. Surprisingly, this policy had the opposite of the intended effect on the birth rate (births per 1000 people) of China in the years following its institution. While the rate was 17.82 in 1979, it had risen to 23.33 by 1987 and took until 1994 to fall below 1979’s rate. This is important, as it tells us that such catch-all policies with no efficient way of enforcement do not work, and are oppressive but ineffectual. Of course, China’s birth rate did eventually fall quite dramatically, but it was not the immediate change they likely were hoping for. Even so, the morality of China’s program is questionable, and the government has since rolled it back into a two-child policy.
For a more effective program, we must look to Iran. While the Shia fundamentalist group lead by Ayatollah Khomeini may not seem like the type to put in place birth restriction policies, they are a great example of extremely successful policies. Upon taking power in 1979, the birth rate in Iran was 43.75. 10 years later, after a program which involved heavy endorsement of condoms and vasectomies, Iran’s birth rate had fallen to 35.29, and has continued to fall to date, where it stands at 17.10, last recorded in 2015. From this, we can learn that birth control is a very effective means for reducing births, and may in fact be a solution for overpopulation. Of course, we should be cautious, as this steep decline in births could easily be the cause of another lurking variable or a combination of factors. However, this does suggest that population control that is not violent like Uzbekistan or overly oppressive like China can work.
Sources: https://www.babble.com/baby/10-astounding-population-laws-from-around-the-world/
This article gives 10 examples of countries which have either attempted to lower or raise birth rates, and thus populations through various measures.
data.worldbank.org
This website gives figures and graphs for various statistics for every country for which there exist figures. We obtained our data on birth rates from this resource.
Embed code for graph of birth rate data: <iframe src="https://data.worldbank.org/share/widget?contextual=default&indicators=SP.DYN.CBRT.IN&locations=IR-CN" width='450' height='300' frameBorder='0' scrolling="no" ></iframe>