Question

The study of human population growth is
A) Anthropology
B) Sociology
C) Demography
D) Geography

Answer 1

When the population of a country grows due to decrease in mortality and increase in fertility, it is said that the demographic dividend of the country is increasing.

Complete Answer:
Human population is one of the most researched yet fascinating fields of study. You must be wondering, what exactly is studied in the human population? Well, the human population of a region or a country depicts the socio-economic aspect. How fast the population is growing, what are the factors responsible for growth, why some countries have a high rate of population growth as compared to others, what is the ratio of females to males in a particular region, etc. are some of the aspects of human population study.

In other words, we can say that following population attributes are studied in a particular human population:

1. Size of the human population
2. Demographic measure
   - Birth rate
   - Death rate
   - Fertility rate
   - Life expectancy
   - Population growth rate
3. Age-sex structure depicted in the form of population pyramid
4. Spatial and temporal changes in a population due to
   - Immigration
   - Emigration
   - Ageing
   - Death

Apart from these, the sociological aspects such as community health status, employment rate, poverty, etc. are also taken in account while studying the human population of a region.
Therefore, there is a branch of science dedicated towards studying the human population and it is called demography. When there is an increase in population, such that there is a large number of individuals in working age groups (in the case of India, it is 15-64 years), it is said that the country is rich in demographic dividend.

Anthropology refers to the study of human behaviour and societies in past and present. Sociology studies the structure, function and behaviour of different aspects of human society. Geography is the relationships between people and their environments and the study of places.

Therefore, the correct answer is option C.

Note: All of these processes contribute to changes in populations, including how people inhabit the earth, form nations and societies, and develop culture.