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Chapter 11: Population Policy - Coggle Diagram
Chapter 11: Population Policy
The Nature of Population Policy
Scholarly interest in fertility has been accompanied by a concern with how these affect social well-being, economic conditions, and political affairs
Led to efforts to control demographic changes for the "better"
Population policies manipulate variables such as fertility, mortality, or migration
The most important force involved with shaping policy is the government
Objectives of policies influenced by the political ideology of the ruling power
Case Studies
India
A social democratically oriented republic
Began its long term process of policy development under British Colonial rule
Continues to struggle today to create and effective and acceptable approach
China
A communist one party autocracy
Turned to policy-oriented control very late in its long history
Argued for many years that population control was a destructive course
Now has the most-strict and most-effective set of population policies
Immigration Policy
The flow of immigrants can have substantial demographic and social impacts
International migrants tend to be young, male, and skilled
Migration law and policy strongly influenced by public perceptions and prevailing ideologies
Long-term impact of immigrants on the majority culture a concern
Clearly affected by white supremacy, racism, and xenophobia
21st century receptivity to diversity shaping immigration policies
U.S. policy specifies a preference for 3 types of immigrants
Those who come with employment assured
Refugees or asylum seekers
Those who come through family connections
The Role of Values in Population Policy
Family-planning organizations are bureaucracies
Bureaucracies are known for efficient but impersonal nature
Government exercises considerable control over individual contraceptive decisions
The U.S. has been the strongest supporter of international family-planning programs since WWII
Programs argue cash and in-kind incentives are not coercion
How Population Policies are Made
The creation of policy on social issues is rarely a rational undertaking
The end result of decisions made by dozens of people
Human decisions affected by value judgments: right or wrong, good or bad
Stages of the Policy Process
Agenda Setting: issues are brought to the surface
Decision Making: Formulating a clear definition of policy goals
Creating strategies for achieving the goals
Implementation: Planning, organization, and staffing of agencies
Development of rules, directives, and regulations
Providing direction and coordination of personnel and expenditures
Creating a Population Policy: The Case of Zambia
The nation's economy began a serious and rapid decline in the early 1980's
The kwacha was devalued and a severe food shortage occurred
The World Bank told them to consider the impact of population growth
The government solicited the help of a wide range of national interest groups
1984 World Population Conference in Mexico City
Developed several specific strategies for population growth
Evaluating Population Policies
Process Evaluation
A type of evaluation research that focuses on the manner in which a program is implemented
Efficiency Evaluation
A type of evaluation research that focuses on how program funds are spent
Program Evaluation
A type of research designed to determine if a program is effective
Impact Evaluation
A type of evaluation research that focuses on the extent to which the goals of a program have been achieved
Why Are Population Policies Necessary?
Industrialization
Technological innovation
Expanded education opportunities
Rapid urban growth
We can engage in a wide variety of social, political, and economic activities, at both private and public levels
However, what is good at the individual level may not be in the common interests of the community
Children, Families, and Communities
Garrett Hardin, a radical neo-Malthusian, published an updated version of the classic parable "The Tragedy of Commons (1973)"
Commons: any resource shared by a group of people
Argued we must modify value structures that motivate high fertility
Policy makers, social scientists, and educators across the world agree
Optimum Population Size
Sustainable Population Size
The Legal Dimension: Policy Implementation and Fertility Determinants
Population policies are created to help achieve desirable living standards and to prevent the erosion or collapse of economic and social systems
Population laws can focus on any of the components of growth
Unethical and illegal to increase mortality
Compulsory out-migration also at odds with basic human rights
This leaves birth and migration
These laws are usually framed in terms of restrictive quotas for immigrants and support for fertility control
Fertility Control
Postpartum abstinence
Abortion
Contraception
Age at marriage