“An Essay on the Principle of Population” written by Thomas Malthus in 1798 had a pessimistic point of view on large populations in the future world. However, world population had doubled in the past 50 years and reached 8 billion in November of 2022. Was Malthus wrong? To answer the above question, this course will first examine the pattern of demographic transition around the world. Specifically, the demographic statistics of global trends and country features will be investigated. Second, a basic concept of demographic transition will be introduced. We will focus the two factors that play important roles in forming a country’s demographic transition: fertility and mortality. In particular, we will pay attention to the phenomena of ultra-low fertilities in East Asian countries. Finally, we move to population aging and study its causes and possible policies.

By the end of the semester, students are capable of (1) obtaining the general picture of global demographic transition; (2) having basic concepts of demographic economics; (3) understanding the linkage of demography and economics; and (4) be aware of the problems caused by population aging and possible solutions.

Grades for this course will be determined by the following scheme: Two assignments 40% (20% for each), oral presentations (twice) 20% (10% for each), and a term paper 40%. The details on the grading will be discussed in class. Late submission will not be graded. Using ChatGPT to generate assignments and term papers is prohibited. Those who are caught will be failed.

3-5 hours

see the syllabus

see the syllabus