Demographic characteristics. Demographic characteristics of social groups. Science demography

The word "demography" was formed from the words "demos" and "grapho". In Greek, they mean "people" and "write", respectively. The literal interpretation of this phrase - "description of the population", or "narodopisanie". However, the science of demography throughout its history has never been confined to description. The subject of her study has always been deeper and broader.

History of appearance

Science, the subject of which is the demography of the population, has a specific date of foundation. Its beginning was laid in January 1662. It was then that a book was published in London, written by an English captain and merchant, self-taught scientist John Graunt. During the period when the author was working on his work, flashes of plague and other contagious diseases often occurred in the country. Bulletins on the mortality of the population were published weekly in London, and this information was of practical importance, because readers could at the first sign of a threat to their lives leave the dangerous city.

In grieving newsletters, Graunt saw a benefit for science. He studied all the lists of births and deaths published in London in eighty years. In this case, Graunt drew attention to a number of regularities. In particular, he noted that the number of born boys is more than girls, and this difference is constant and is 7.7%. The scientist drew attention to the excess of death rate over birth rate, concluding that the number of residents of London increases only due to the resettlement of people from the province. A certain pattern was also found in marital relations: on each union, on average, there were four births. By the number of births and deaths, the scientist was able to determine the number of inhabitants of the city, and by age of the deceased - the age structure of the population.

The conclusions made were extremely important, because at that time no censuses were made. In addition, the statistics of the population, except for the church, was not conducted by anyone.

A small book, the text of which was located on ninety pages, was the source of the development not only of demography, but also of sociology, as well as statistics.

Further development

The emergence of demography as a science in subsequent centuries took place in two directions. On the one hand, there was a narrowing of the subject of its study. In contrast, the demographic object was influenced by an increasing number of diverse factors. At the same time, it became evident that this science covers an extremely wide area, which is the entire social life. She could not cope with this task. That is why, from the subject of the study of demography, there was a gradual exclusion of questions of economics, social structure, education and upbringing, morality, mobility and health of the population, and so on. These issues began to explore other sciences, such as sociology, pedagogy, ethnography, political economy, medicine, etc.

By the mid-sixties of the last century, many specialists began to limit the tasks of demography by studying the natural displacement of the population. And the movement here is understood not in the physical, but in general terms. And it means change.

Classification

The demography of the population can be of two kinds. One of them is natural, and the second is mechanical, or migration. The second type of population change is the movement of people across the territory. The natural movement is a constant change in the structure and population. It occurs as a result of deaths, births, divorces and marriages. The natural movement of the population also includes a change in the sex and age structure of the inhabitants, which has a direct impact on all demographic processes.

From this we can draw a definite conclusion: the demography of the world shows that the population is in motion and is constantly changing. People are born and die, get married and divorce, change their place of residence, work, profession, etc. As a result of these processes, the structure and population constantly change.

The social nature of demography

The continuous movement of renewal of the population in mathematical terms can have both a plus sign and a minus sign. In this case, it occurs under the influence of the laws of social development, is one of the components of social life, and therefore has a social character. The demographic area is the result of people's activities. Life expectancy, the birth of fewer or more children in the family, celibacy or marriage - all refers to social factors. They are subject to the impact of social laws and are a component of the functioning of the entire social organism.

In this case, the main elements that make up the social structure of society are social communities and groups. They are associations of people, producing joint actions. At the same time, all their work is aimed at meeting the needs of representatives of this social group.

Subject of study

The goal pursued by any science is the disclosure of the laws of the development of a certain area, which is simply impossible without the establishment of existing regularities.

The concept of demography can be revealed in the following way: it is a science, the subject of which are regularities in the processes of natural reproduction of the population. The concept of the population here is deciphered in a specific way. This is not just a collection of people. This is their large number, which has a rich structure necessary for constant renewal. The main quality that determines the population is its ability to self-reproduction. Thus, this notion does not include such aggregates as labor collectives, tenants of houses, and so on.

Objectives of the study

In addition to knowledge of the laws, any science has practical problems. There are also demographics. Their list includes the following:

• Study of factors and trends in a variety of demographic processes;
• Development of measures and forecasts of population policy.

The challenge is to identify trends in the natural movement of the population. And here statistics come to the aid. Demography chooses the indices necessary for each particular case and estimates their reliability.

No less importance is attached to the study of various factors of population movement. In this case, as a rule, the causes of processes and phenomena are implied.

Based on the analysis of the results obtained, demographers develop forecasts concerning future changes in the structure and population. Their conclusions are based on the planning of the national economy of the country. These forecasts are important in the allocation of labor resources, training, development of housing construction, etc.

Based on the knowledge of real trends in the processes of population movement, there is a definition of the goals of the country's social and demographic policy. The development of such programs is complex, therefore the list of necessary measures is prepared not only by demographers. This is done by sociologists and lawyers, physicians and psychologists, experts in the field of advertising, etc.

Demographic features

The distribution of the population by any significant difference is understood by its structure. In this case, any characteristic can be taken. The main thing is for the researcher to be of interest. These characteristics are a demographic feature.

Differences of different population groups

What is a demographic feature? This is the distribution of the population according to gender structure and age, nationality, etc. One people necessarily differs from another in certain features. This is the demographic sign. Examples of this are numerous. As a sample, you can take the demographic sign of the Scots and the British.

Sexual structure

The entire population is divided into women and men. This is the demographic feature of the sexual structure. The main characteristics of this classification are influenced by three factors. The first of these is a biological constant and is determined by the ratio of the sexes of newborn babies. The second factor is the sex difference between the dead people. The demographic feature of the sexual structure also depends on the differences in the intensity of migration of men and women.

So, boys on average are born a little more than girls. The ratio among newborns is stable. For one hundred girls it is one hundred and five-hundred and six-six boys. However, physiologists hold the opinion that in infancy, the male organism is less resilient. That is why, at the initial stage, the boys die a little more. Further, mortality rates in the sexes are modified. Thus, in the developed states men die more because of occupational diseases, injuries and adherence to alcohol and smoking. In developing countries, the picture is reversed. Here, the mortality rate of women is higher. This is due to hard work and frequent childbirth, low social status and malnutrition.

Age structure

The distribution of the population is also carried out for the period from the birth of a person to a certain moment in his life. What is the demographic feature by age structure? This is the distribution of people according to the years they lived, and in babies by months, weeks, days and hours.

The age structure of society has a significant impact on demographic processes and the magnitude of the indicators in this area. So, if the percentage of young people is high among the population, then it is possible to predict an increase in the level of nuptiality, as well as a birth rate with a decrease in mortality.

The age structure influences not only the demographic, but also all social processes. With the duration of a person's period of life, his emotionality, psychology, and also, to a certain extent, his reason are connected. Revolutions and riots are more likely in states with a young age structure. Aging societies, where there is a high proportion of older people, on the contrary, are subject to stagnation and dogmatism.

Marriage structure

The demographic sign of the population is also determined by the form of the relationship between a woman and a man. Knowledge of the marriage structure of society is important for studying the processes of fertility, as well as mortality. At the same time, demography is interested not only in the legal form of marriage. Spousal relations, regardless of their legal form, are also researched by scientists.

At the time of marriage, divorce or widowhood, the marital status of people goes from one state to another. On a society-wide scale, these cases become components of a single process. Together they represent the reproduction of the marriage structure.

Knowledge of these processes is important to determine the causes of disintegration and the formation of families, changes in fertility trends and mortality of the population.

Creation of a new scientific discipline

Social demography was formed at the intersection of demography and sociology. This is a new scientific discipline. She studies the interaction of social and demographic processes. The study of the natural movement of the population in this discipline is carried out at the micro level. Social demography studies relationship and personality. This discipline also considers the structure of the family.

The subject of research, on which social demography draws the main attention, is demographic attitudes and behavior, as well as social norms.

Social orientation of demography

Any community of people is formed on the basis of certain characteristics. Science demography studies the population by sex, by age, etc. However, the demographic characteristic in itself is neutral. Social status he acquires only when considering the general socio-historical context.

What is the demographic feature in this case? For example, being a woman or a man means not just possessing the inherent semi-physiological characteristics. This concept includes the assimilation of the system of social role, as well as the corresponding stereotype of behavior, tastes, interests, character properties, etc. Socio-demographic features are factors of femininity or man's masculinity. This has its pros and cons. On the one hand, the demographic sign of social groups is an essential condition for happiness and peace of mind. However, the medal has a downside. A demographic characteristic of social groups perceived by a person can become an obstacle to the formation of a gifted creative personality. He will hamper manifestations of free-thinking, forbidding retreat from the stereotypes of thinking and behavior, as well as from the accepted rules.

Sections and branches of demography

Any science has a lot of thematic parts. Demography is no exception. It includes various sections, allowing to study specific issues.

Thus, the task of theoretical demography is the development of a general theory of population. And all factors are analyzed on the basis of ongoing empirical research and scientific hypotheses put forward, which reveal quantitative links existing between events and phenomena in the natural movement of the population.

The next section of science is the history of demography. This discipline examines the evolution of knowledge in the field of population movement.

Demographic statistics are used to study the socio-demographic composition of the population. This sub-branch of the scientific discipline is interested in researching the composition of the population. The subject of studying demographic statistics is nationality and education, qualification and position, profession, as well as population grouping by sources of income, etc. This discipline examines migration flows and economic burden in families.

Information on family structures is collected by household statistics. She pays attention to the quality of nutrition and the availability of durable goods, income and life of the population. In the area of her attention are data on the number of married couples, their children, etc.

An expanded system of information about the dynamics and reproduction of the population is descriptive, or descriptive, demography.

It is no secret that there is a definite dependence between the reproduction of the population and the level of development of the country. Her study deals with economic demography. This discipline analyzes the impact of all demographic processes on the proportions and structure of economic growth.

Economic demography includes three areas (sections). They are the following: the economy of growth and quality of the population, as well as the economy of socio-demographic structures.

Ethnic demography is also an interdisciplinary research area. She examines the structure of migration of ethnic groups and the influence of ethno-confessional systems of behavior on the level of population reproduction.

There is a demographic and political. The field of her research is the interaction of socio-political and demographic processes. The subject of studying this discipline is the political risks of the demographic policy pursued by the state.

In the early seventies of the last century another branch of scientific discipline arose. There was a medical demography that began to study the health of the population, the impact of environmental and social conditions on the mortality rate. At the same time, the main task of this branch was to analyze the reasons for the loss of residents, as well as the development on the basis of the data obtained the most favorable conditions for the country's demographic processes.