Ch.5 Population Theories and Dynamics Exam Prep

Chapter 5

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In writing the first edition (1798) of his now famous “Essay on the Principle of Population,” which of the following two writers was Thomas Malthus reacting to?
   1. Marquis de Condorcet and David Ricardo
   2. John Maynard Keynes and Alfred Marshall
   3. William Godwin and Marquis de Condorcet
   4. Robert Wallace and David Ricardo
2. Although recognized as an important contribution, Malthus’s Essay on Population has also been criticized. Which of the following has not been a criticism of this Essay?
   1. Too much emphasis on the limitation of the supply of land.
   2. Too much emphasis on the effectiveness of birth control technology.
   3. Its contention that population grows geometrically and food production grows arithmetically.
   4. Its neglect of European emigration.
3. Who thought that if society could be reorganized in a more equitable (that is, socialist) way, then population problems would disappear.
   1. Paul Ehrlich
   2. Kingsley Davis
   3. Mother Theresa
   4. Karl Marx
4. The demographic transition is the process of moving from ____________ to ______________.
   1. High birth and high death rates/low death and low birth rates
   2. low birth and low death rates/ high birth and high death rates
   3. high birth and low death rates/ high birth and high death rates
   4. incipient decline/ high growth potential
5. Marx disagreed with Malthus on all except which of the following?
   1. The poor are at fault for their own poverty
   2. Preventing birth is immoral
   3. Welfare perpetuates misery
   4. Why and how populations grow.
6. This nineteenth century philosopher believed that scientific progress would enable the food supply to grow far beyond the capacity of his day.
   1. Thomas Malthus
   2. Marquis de Cordorcet
   3. William Godwin
   4. Karl Marx.
7. The difference between the Malthusians and the Neo-Malthusians is that
   1. The Neo-Malthusians believe in evolution.
   2. The Neo-Malthusians substituted birth control for moral restraint.
   3. The Neo-Malthusians were happier people than the Malthusians.
   4. The Neo-Malthusians did not believe in God as did Reverend Thomas Malthus.
8. The most famous Neo-Malthusian is
   1. Barak Obama
   2. Karl Marx
   3. Marquis de Condorcet
   4. Paul Ehrlich
9. According to Thomas Malthus,
   1. People have a powerful instinct to reproduce.
   2. Poverty is a natural consequence of population growth.
   3. As food supply increases, people have more children (labor) and thus wages are lowered.
   4. All of the above
   5. None of the above
10. According to Paul Ehrlich, the rich and poor alike are dying from the by-products of affluence-what are they?
    1. pollution and hunger
    2. pollution and ecological disasters
    3. hunger and ecological disasters
    4. none of the above
11. Noted demographer Kingsley Davis observed that the most powerful incentive for family size limitation is
    1. Fear of poverty.
    2. Tax benefits.
    3. Rising prosperity.
    4. Whether prospective parents really like children.
12. Compared to marquis de Cordorcet, Thomas Malthus was
    1. A pessimist
    2. An optimist
    3. A pacifist.
    4. A plagiarist
13. Demographic transition theory
    1. Emerged from modernization theory
    2. Postulated that industrialization weakens traditional institutions.
    3. Hypothesized that with urbanization, there was less demand for large families.
    4. All of the above.
    5. None of the above
14. Paul Ehrlich suggested that there are only two solutions to the population problem:
    1. The Green Revolution and the birth rate solution.
    2. The Green Revolution and the death rate solution.
    3. The death rate solution and the birth rate solution.
    4. None of the above.
15. Who said that “viewed in the long-run, earth’s population has been like a long, thin powder fuse that burns slowly and haltingly until it finally reaches the charge and explodes”?
    1. Paul Ehrlich
    2. Thomas Malthus
    3. Kingsley Davis
    4. Karl Marx
    5. None of the above
16. Age Sex Pyramids. Which of the following statements is not true?
    1. Males are on the left and females are on the right.
    2. The age-sex pyramids for most developing countries are shaped like triangles.
    3. The age-sex pyramids for most developed countries are shaped like inverted triangles.
    4. Age sex pyramids illustrate the potential for population momentum.

True False Questions

1. T F A youth bulge is the same as a young population.
2. T F The dependency ratio increases with an aging population.
3. T F Thomas Malthus was important during his lifetime, but his ideas have been largely forgotten.
4. T F In 2030, there will be two American workers for every Social Security recipient.
5. T F The United States accepts more immigrants than any other country in the world.
6. T F Without Malthus, Charles Darwin might not have thought about evolution.
7. T F In most countries and cultures, sexual practices and fertility adhere to the country’s government policy.
8. T F Emigration has the effect of slowing population growth in the donor country.
9. T F The European Fertility Project found that lower infant mortality provided the tipping point for lower marital fertility.
10. T F Malthus blamed the poor for their own poverty.
11. T F For most of human history, populations were very young.
12. T F Marx and Engels blamed the poor for their own poverty.

Essay Questions (Suggested Main Points listed)

1. Why is Thomas Malthus so important?
   1. He inspired others to think differently about the world.
      1. Population causes and consequences
      2. Inspired Darwin and others
   2. His idea that too many children causes poverty led the English Parliament to change its laws.
      1. Provides a justification for not giving welfare assistance
2. According to the chapter, the reformulated Demographic Transition Theory provides a home for several of demographic perspectives: Malthusian, Marxist, and Neo-Malthusian. Explain how this theory accommodates each of these perspectives.
   1. Marx: a change in the social structure (modernization) is necessary to bring about a decline in fertility.
   2. Malthus: fertility first declined in Europe primarily as a result of a delay in marriage, much as Malthus would have preferred