Introduction
Using the research strategies outlined below, write a 500+ word essay (minimum 3 pages,
double-spaced) that employs demographic data in comparing and contrasting the
population patterns that exist in two countries at different levels of economic
development. The idea is to find important insights into the relationship between
demographics and economics.
Key Words: Crude Birth Rate, Crude Death Rate, Natural Increase Rate, Age-sex
structure, Total Fertility Rate, Life Expectancy, Dependency Ratio, Aging Population,
Population Pyramid, and Demographic Transition.
Research Strategy
Use the following website containing summary demographic data for several countries of
the world to extract population data.
http://www.census.gov/population/international/data/idb/informationGateway.php
Select any two countries of your choice: one Less Developed Country (LDC) and one
More Developed Country (MDC). Click the following link for the list of MDCs and
LDCs based on the United Nations Human development Index. This data is available via
http://hdr.undp.org/en/content/table-3-inequality-adjusted-human-development-index
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_Human_Development_Index
Choose one country from the current list of MDcs (countries with very high human
development based on Human Development Index) and one LDC (Countries from low
human development based on Human Development Index).
Examples: Mali and Germany, Nepal and the Norway.
2
Gather Demographic data for the 2 countries of your choice
Using the aforementioned website, collect demographic data for the two countries. The
demographic data may include levels of fertility (measured using Crude Birth Rate and/or
Total Fertility Rate), levels of mortality (measured using Crude Death Rate, Infant
Mortality Rate, under 5 mortality, and life expectancy), population growth rate (measured
using Natural Increase Rate or doubling time), age structure of the population (percentage
of young, working, and old population, dependency ratio).
Population Pyramid (for two or three points in time)
Extract two population pyramids for the two countries at two different points in
time. One pyramid should reflect projected data for the year 2025 or later; the other
should represent a distant date in the countries’ population history (For example, 1985
and 2030). You could also do some more exploration and generate more population
pyramids (past, present, and future) as the website provides projections. Once you are on
the website, look for the Select Report box on the left hand side and then select
Population Pyramid Graph. In the Select Years box, choose 2 or 3 points in time (for
example, 1990, 2014, and 2035). Next, in the Select Countries box, choose the two
countries of your choice and then click submit. You should copy and paste your pyramids
into your essay.
Population Age structure
Collect data on a country’s population that is already classified into three major age
categories from
http://www.census.gov/population/international/data/idb/informationGateway.php
 0 – 15 year olds , representing young, economically dependent group
 15 – 65 year olds, representing productive, working group who form the labor
force of a country, and
 65+ year olds representing senior citizens or retirees who are also economically
dependent on the country’s work force.
3
Once you are on the website, look for the Select Report box on the left hand side and then
select Population by Broad Age Groups. In the Select Years box, choose 2-3 points in
time (for example, 1990 and 2035). Next, in the Select Countries box, choose the two
countries of your choice and then click submit. You can copy and paste the tables into a
word file or download the data in excel and paste it into your essay.
Include your data tables for the age-sex structure of the population in your essay as
follows:
Country A (More Developed Country)
Year Age
Both Sexes
Population Male Population
Female
Population
Percent
Both Sexes
Percent
Male
Percent
Female
Sex
Ratio
1990 Total
1990 0-14
1990 15-64
1990 65-99
2030 Total
2030 0-14
2030 15-64
2030 65-99
Country B (Less Developed country)
Year Age
Both Sexes
Population Male Population
Female
Population
Percent
Both Sexes
Percent
Male
Percent
Female
Sex
Ratio
1990 Total
1990 0-14
1990 15-64
1990 65-99
2030 Total
2030 0-14
2030 15-64
2030 65-99
Birth Rate, Death Rate, Natural Increase Rate Trends
Collect and graph the crude birth rate, death rate, and natural increase rate for all
available years using excel. Data is readily available at the above-mentioned website for
50+ years and you could cut and paste the data from the website into excel. However,
bear in mind that you could select only 25 years at a time. Once you are on the website, look for the Select Report box on the left hand side and then
select Components of Population Growth. In the Select Years box, choose all years when
data is available (for example, 1990-2050). Next, in the Select Countries box, choose the
two countries of your choice and then click submit. You can download the data in excel
and draw line graphs of CBR, CDR, and NIR by following the instructions titled “How to
Create a Line Chart in Excel” below.
In Excel, plug in your data in four vertical columns, with the first column being the Year,
the second column CBR, the third column CDR and the fourth column NIR and create a
chart using the chart wizard icon in excel (See the following example for arrangement of
data).
You could also draw a line to indicate the decade or year when the country has moved
from one stage of the demographic transition to the next (see the following graph).
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
CBR, CDR, NIR, and Demographic Transition for Country X
CBR
CDR
NIR
Stage 2 Stage 3
Year CBR CDR NIR
1990
1991
1992
.
.
2048
2049
2050

Note that the population pyramids that you extracted from the above website and
the data tables and graphs that you have generated in excel for both countries
should be included in your essay or attached as an appendix and be used as a basis
for writing your essay.
6
Your Essay
Consider all the information and demographic data you have compiled to discuss or
address the following questions or issues in your essay.
1. Compare and contrast the two countries in terms of their age-sex structure, birth
and death rates, population growth rates, and stage in the demographic transition.
2. Explain the reasons why there are such demographic differences between less
developed and more developed countries.
3. Describe and analyze the population features of each country as depicted in the
population pyramids. Discuss the pyramids in terms of their changing shapes and
possible explanations for these changes. Explain why the shapes of the pyramids
for the two countries are different or the same?
4. Which of the two countries has a more rapidly growing population and which
country has a stable or declining population?
5. Which country has a work force with a heavier tax burden (dependency) and
which country has a large concentration of old citizens?
6. At what stage (s) of the demographic transition are the two countries at present
and when will they move to the next stage of the demographic transition?
7. Identify the main population problem (s) facing the two countries. Propose two
relevant population control measures or policies that can be adopted to solve the
population problems you identified.
8. Interpret or explain any demographic peculiarities that you may find in each
country in the past, present, and future.
Please paste your population pyramids and other graphics (tables, charts, photographs,
maps, etc) into the body of your essay.
Paper Comments Introduction
Using the research strategies outlined below, write a 500+ word essay (minimum 3 pages,
double-spaced) that employs demographic data in comparing and contrasting the
population patterns that exist in two countries at different levels of economic
development. The idea is to find important insights into the relationship between
demographics and economics.
Key Words: Crude Birth Rate, Crude Death Rate, Natural Increase Rate, Age-sex
structure, Total Fertility Rate, Life Expectancy, Dependency Ratio, Aging Population,
Population Pyramid, and Demographic Transition.
Research Strategy
Use the following website containing summary demographic data for several countries of
the world to extract population data.
http://www.census.gov/population/international/data/idb/informationGateway.php
Select any two countries of your choice: one Less Developed Country (LDC) and one
More Developed Country (MDC). Click the following link for the list of MDCs and
LDCs based on the United Nations Human development Index. This data is available via
http://hdr.undp.org/en/content/table-3-inequality-adjusted-human-development-index
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_Human_Development_Index
Choose one country from the current list of MDcs (countries with very high human
development based on Human Development Index) and one LDC (Countries from low
human development based on Human Development Index).
Examples: Mali and Germany, Nepal and the Norway.
2
Gather Demographic data for the 2 countries of your choice
Using the aforementioned website, collect demographic data for the two countries. The
demographic data may include levels of fertility (measured using Crude Birth Rate and/or
Total Fertility Rate), levels of mortality (measured using Crude Death Rate, Infant
Mortality Rate, under 5 mortality, and life expectancy), population growth rate (measured
using Natural Increase Rate or doubling time), age structure of the population (percentage
of young, working, and old population, dependency ratio).
Population Pyramid (for two or three points in time)
Extract two population pyramids for the two countries at two different points in
time. One pyramid should reflect projected data for the year 2025 or later; the other
should represent a distant date in the countries’ population history (For example, 1985
and 2030). You could also do some more exploration and generate more population
pyramids (past, present, and future) as the website provides projections. Once you are on
the website, look for the Select Report box on the left hand side and then select
Population Pyramid Graph. In the Select Years box, choose 2 or 3 points in time (for
example, 1990, 2014, and 2035). Next, in the Select Countries box, choose the two
countries of your choice and then click submit. You should copy and paste your pyramids
into your essay.
Population Age structure
Collect data on a country’s population that is already classified into three major age
categories from
http://www.census.gov/population/international/data/idb/informationGateway.php
 0 – 15 year olds , representing young, economically dependent group
 15 – 65 year olds, representing productive, working group who form the labor
force of a country, and
 65+ year olds representing senior citizens or retirees who are also economically
dependent on the country’s work force.
3
Once you are on the website, look for the Select Report box on the left hand side and then
select Population by Broad Age Groups. In the Select Years box, choose 2-3 points in
time (for example, 1990 and 2035). Next, in the Select Countries box, choose the two
countries of your choice and then click submit. You can copy and paste the tables into a
word file or download the data in excel and paste it into your essay.
Include your data tables for the age-sex structure of the population in your essay as
follows:
Country A (More Developed Country)
Year Age
Both Sexes
Population Male Population
Female
Population
Percent
Both Sexes
Percent
Male
Percent
Female
Sex
Ratio
1990 Total
1990 0-14
1990 15-64
1990 65-99
2030 Total
2030 0-14
2030 15-64
2030 65-99
Country B (Less Developed country)
Year Age
Both Sexes
Population Male Population
Female
Population
Percent
Both Sexes
Percent
Male
Percent
Female
Sex
Ratio
1990 Total
1990 0-14
1990 15-64
1990 65-99
2030 Total
2030 0-14
2030 15-64
2030 65-99
Birth Rate, Death Rate, Natural Increase Rate Trends
Collect and graph the crude birth rate, death rate, and natural increase rate for all
available years using excel. Data is readily available at the above-mentioned website for
50+ years and you could cut and paste the data from the website into excel. However,
bear in mind that you could select only 25 years at a time. Once you are on the website, look for the Select Report box on the left hand side and then
select Components of Population Growth. In the Select Years box, choose all years when
data is available (for example, 1990-2050). Next, in the Select Countries box, choose the
two countries of your choice and then click submit. You can download the data in excel
and draw line graphs of CBR, CDR, and NIR by following the instructions titled “How to
Create a Line Chart in Excel” below.
In Excel, plug in your data in four vertical columns, with the first column being the Year,
the second column CBR, the third column CDR and the fourth column NIR and create a
chart using the chart wizard icon in excel (See the following example for arrangement of
data).
You could also draw a line to indicate the decade or year when the country has moved
from one stage of the demographic transition to the next (see the following graph).
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
CBR, CDR, NIR, and Demographic Transition for Country X
CBR
CDR
NIR
Stage 2 Stage 3
Year CBR CDR NIR
1990
1991
1992
.
.
2048
2049
2050

Note that the population pyramids that you extracted from the above website and
the data tables and graphs that you have generated in excel for both countries
should be included in your essay or attached as an appendix and be used as a basis
for writing your essay.
6
Your Essay
Consider all the information and demographic data you have compiled to discuss or
address the following questions or issues in your essay.
1. Compare and contrast the two countries in terms of their age-sex structure, birth
and death rates, population growth rates, and stage in the demographic transition.
2. Explain the reasons why there are such demographic differences between less
developed and more developed countries.
3. Describe and analyze the population features of each country as depicted in the
population pyramids. Discuss the pyramids in terms of their changing shapes and
possible explanations for these changes. Explain why the shapes of the pyramids
for the two countries are different or the same?
4. Which of the two countries has a more rapidly growing population and which
country has a stable or declining population?
5. Which country has a work force with a heavier tax burden (dependency) and
which country has a large concentration of old citizens?
6. At what stage (s) of the demographic transition are the two countries at present
and when will they move to the next stage of the demographic transition?
7. Identify the main population problem (s) facing the two countries. Propose two
relevant population control measures or policies that can be adopted to solve the
population problems you identified.
8. Interpret or explain any demographic peculiarities that you may find in each
country in the past, present, and future.
Please paste your population pyramids and other graphics (tables, charts, photographs,
maps, etc) into the body of your essay.