SOCb2020 Introduction to Population Studies

Faculty of Social Studies
Spring 2024
Extent and Intensity
2/0/0. 6 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
Beatrice Elena Chromková Manea, M.A., Ph.D. (lecturer)
prof. PhDr. Ladislav Rabušic, CSc. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
prof. PhDr. Ladislav Rabušic, CSc.
Department of Sociology – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Ing. Soňa Enenkelová
Supplier department: Department of Sociology – Faculty of Social Studies
Timetable
Tue 14:00–15:40 U34
Prerequisites
There are no formally enforced prerequisites. This is a BA level course and this defines the teaching style, the anticipated workload, and the level of student involvement. The course will be given in the form of lecture, in-class discussions and exercises. Reasonable ability to write and speak in English is anticipated.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

The capacity limit for the course is 20 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 5/20, only registered: 0/20
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
there are 14 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display
Course objectives
The main aim of this course is to introduce concepts in population studies and demography. This is an introductory course to the sociological study of various populations (demography). This course will cover topics related to population composition, population growth, data sources, theoretical perspectives in population studies, population policies. We will present concepts on fertility, mortality, migration, unions, health. The course will present world trends and differences in fertility, mortality, morbidity, health, migration and population policies.
Learning outcomes
Students will be able to:
- explain basic notions in population studies
- demonstrate ability to calculate various indicators used in population studies
Syllabus
  • COURSE OUTLINE:
  • – Course organization and administration, introduction to demography and population studies: what is demography, what are population studies, concerns of demography and population studies, why studying demography and population studies
  • – Sources of data in population studies and demography: data requirements, types of data, different sources of data, census, survey data, strengths and weaknesses of various types of data
  • - Theories of population studies and demography: demographic transition theory, fertility theories, sociological theories in population studies and demography
  • - Population growth
  • – Population structures
  • – Fertility: what is fertility, measurement of fertility, world fertility trends and patterns, specific (non)fertility (non-marital, male and childlessness)
  • – Mortality: what is mortality, measurement of mortality, life table, world mortality trends, causes of death, infant mortality
  • – Morbidity and health: introduction, measurements, world trends, causes
  • – Migration: introduction, measures of migration, theories of migration, types of migration (internal and international), world trends in migration
  • – Unions and households: introduction, measurements, first marriages and re-marriages, marital dissolutions, world trends in unions and households
  • - The most pressing population problems in Europe
Literature
    required literature
  • LUNDQUIST, Jennifer Hickes, Douglas L. ANDERTON and David YAUKEY. Demography : the study of human population. Fourth edition. Long Grove: Waveland Press, 2015, xix, 476. ISBN 9781478613060. info
    recommended literature
  • WEEKS, John R. Population : an introduction to concepts and issues. Twelfth edition. Boston: Cengage Learning, 2016, xxv, 580. ISBN 9781305094505. info
Teaching methods
Lectures, readings, class activity that reflects students’ contributions to readings and examples/exercises in Excel.
Assessment methods
Grading consists of: class activity – discussion, examples in Excel (weight 15 % in the final grade, 15 points maximum), a final test (50%, 50 points maximum) and a research paper (35%, 35 points maximum). Points translate into the final grade according to this scheme:
A (93-100 points)
B (85-92 points)
C (77-84points)
D (69-76 points)
E (61-68 points)
F (0-60 points)
Language of instruction
English
Further Comments
Study Materials
The course is taught annually.
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2019, Spring 2021, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2025.
  • Enrolment Statistics (recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/spring2024/SOCb2020