Economic Theory of Population

Scientists through many disciplines have contributed generously on issues relating population growth and the well initial stage of people, resource management, industrial development, pollution control and other many more. The economists as a class stand out clearly by the volume they have written on population and have established how modernization, industrial development and above all the quality of life are intimately related to birth rate and population growth in a society.

In the world for a long time is divided between two clusters of nations in one cluster is the nation that have achieved a very commendable control over birth rate thereby bringing the population growth rate to a near stationary condition and the countries in the other cluster still continue with high population growth rate. The first group countries are industrially and economically well ahead of others. They use the most sophisticated technology both in industrial and agricultural production and have a decent standard of living. The countries in the second cluster are not only economically far behind the nations in the first group, their economy is still largely dependent on traditional agriculture and their standard of living is well behind in comparison with the developed countries. Demographic forecasts are that fluctuations will be a dominant feature than a secular trend in future fertility scenario in modern industrial developed population. In less industrially developed population the fertility decline will show a secular trend. It is therefore no wonder that the economists dominate in the debate and discussion on population.