The effect of female education on marital matches and child health in Bangladesh

This paper examines the effects of female education on marriage outcomes by exploiting the exogenous variation generated by the Female Secondary School Stipend Program in Bangladesh, which made secondary education free for rural girls. Our findings show that an additional year of female education leads to an increase in 0.72 years of husband’s education and that better educated women pair with spouses who have better occupations and are closer in age to their own, suggesting assortative mating. Those educated women appear to experience greater autonomy in making decisions on receiving their own health care and visiting their family. Furthermore, educated women have lower fertility and use more maternal health care, and their children have better health outcomes than those of less-educated women. Overall, our results suggest that the marriage market is one of the channels through which women’s education affects their life outcomes.     

National workshop on population education

The First National Workshop on Population Education was held from 16 to 18 November 1978, involving principals and instructors in extension education of all the eight agricultural extension training institutes, regional directors of agriculture, some district extension officers and representatives from voluntary agencies involved in population education. The object of the Workshop was to discuss and modify the materials prepared for the introduction of the concept of population education in agricultural training institutes. Some materials were also adopted for training purposes of village extension agents. The World Bank project of the Ministry of Agriculture is responsible for introducing in Bangladesh the concept of population education to pre-service, village-level extension workers in the various agricultural extension institutes, and the first project to recruit female extension workers for service in rural areas.     

The effect of female education on fertility: A simple explanation

This paper investigates the structure of the relationship between female education and fertility. It is based on data published in First Country Reports of the World Fertility Surveys for eleven countries—Costa Rica, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Panama, Fiji, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Indonesia. The cumulative marital fertility of educated women is shown to be similar in different settings. A lack of uniformity in the education and fertility relationship including the curvilinear nature of this relationship observed across countries is shown to be attributable to marked differences between countries in the average fertility of women with no education rather than to the presumed differences in the average fertility of the educated women. The structure of the relationship is shown to be similar across several developing countries. This analysis suggests that advancement in female education can be expected to influence fertility behavior even without simultaneous changes in other factors such as increasing opportunity for participation in the paid labor force in the modem sector.     

The effect of population growth on environmental quality

This paper summarizes research on the effect of population growth on environmental quality. Land transformations induced by the spatial expansion of agriculture are probably the major route by which population growth has affected features of the natural environment. These transformations are not automatic and their extent is influenced by social institutions. Intensification of agricultural land use is an alternative response with its own set of environmental implications. These are especially salient in the case of expanded irrigation. In contrast to relations in the agricultural sector, a new version of the conventional I = PAT equation is introduced to suggest that population growth is a minor influence on the extent of industrial pollution. Nevertheless, population policy may play a useful role in strategies to reduce industrial pollution.     

论人口的聚焦效应

本文认为人口聚集有五大主要效益———分工深化效应、学习激励效应、低成本效应、高生活质量效应和文明发展效应;这些效应促进了社会经济的发展和繁荣;当我们就如何实现人口的聚集,提出几点措施;此外本文还就人口聚集有关的问题提出了自己的观点。     

The effect of COVID-19 lockdowns on women's perinatal mental health: a systematic review

BackgroundRisk factors for poor maternal perinatal mental health include a previous mental health diagnosis, reduced access to perinatal services, economic concerns and decreased levels of social support. Adverse maternal perinatal mental health can negatively influence the psychological wellbeing of infants. The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic presented an additional stressor. While literature on the impact of COVID-19 on perinatal mental health exists, no systematic review has focused specifically on maternal perinatal mental health during periods of COVID-19 lockdown.AimsThis systematic review explores how periods of COVID-19 lockdown impacted women’s perinatal mental health.MethodsSearches of CINAHL, PsycARTICLES, PsycINFO, PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science were conducted for literature from 1st January 2020–25th May 2021. Quantitative, peer-reviewed, cross-sectional studies published in English with perinatal women as participants, and data collected during a period of lockdown, were included. Data was assessed for quality and narratively synthesized.FindingsSixteen articles from nine countries met the inclusion criteria. COVID-19 lockdowns negatively impacted perinatal mental health. Risk factors for negative perinatal mental health noted in previous literature were confirmed. In addition, resilience, educational attainment, trimester, and ethnicity were identified as other variables which may influence mental health during perinatal periods experienced during lockdown. Understanding nuance in experience and harnessing intra and interpersonal support could advance options for intervention.ConclusionDeveloping resources for perinatal women that integrate informal sources of support may aid them when normal routine is challenged, and may mediate potential long-term impacts of poor perinatal maternal health on infants.     

Values: their place in population education

In an attempt to resolve the crucial issues relating to dealing with the value dilemmas of students, population educators in the Philippines convened a series of conferences. The Philippine population education teachers, trainers, and administrators participating in the conferences agreed that a fusion of the affective and cognitive processes was necessary and that there should be more student involvement and self-made decisions on the part of students. An issue still unresolved is whether schools should inculcate values in the students or let them resolve or discover values by themselves; the strategies suggested range from open-ended or value processing to close-ended value teaching. Teachers and supervisors stressed that all strategies should be undertaken since they complement each other, but the choice and availability of materials to support and reinforce the strategy continues to be a problem for many participants. Preliminary studies conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of a value clarification strategy support the contention that value clarification processes do make a difference in certain patterns of student behavior, attitudes, and knowledge. Research also shows that the value clarification strategy is ineffective with teachers who are highly authoritarian, closed-minded, and dogmatic. The Population Education Program has responded to recommendations of the conference participants and taken some definite action, such as the implementation of value clarification strategies as part of the teacher training program and development of a list of Filipino values to serve as guides in teaching value-laden population issues.     

India: community approach to population education

Since 1976 the Sri Venkateswara University has established 30 population education cells in affiliated colleges in south India. Population awareness programs have been developed on a modular scale. Seminars, lectures, debates, research projects, surveys, and orientation courses are included in the programs. At the S.V. Arts College in Srikalahasti 29 volunteers conducted a demographic survey of a rural area. Students at the S.T.P.C. College Kurnool took oaths not to marry until age 25 years and not to take a dowry. A prototype kit of 6 lectures based on the concept of population education and its integration into existing curricula has been developed for use at seminars.     

Impact of population changes on education cost

This paper has two principal aims: (1) to analyze and measure how the demographic variables—mortality, fertility, and im migration — affect the cost of education; (2) to evaluate what possibilities developing countries, such as those of Latin America, have for a rapid educational improvement. The paper relates demographic and educational variables of three different populations: Sweden, 1840–1965; the United States, 1850–1960; and Latin America, 1930–2000. Three educational variables are also considered: (a) school attendance rates by sex and age; (b) distribution of students of same age by grade; and (c) cost of student by grade. Demographic changes in countries such as Sweden and the United States were favorable for the development of education. For the future, unless an increase of fertility occurs, mortality and fertility changes will not have a significant effect on the cost of education in these countries. In current less developed countries the demographic changes during the past were less favorable to educational development. A future reduction of fertility will significantly help them to achieve a higher educational level.     

Decentralizing population education research

Population education research will now be conducted at the regional, division, and local levels. It is expected that this decentralization will solve problems faced by population education teachers and supervisors in the field and help to formulate curricula suitable to local needs. It will also mean changes in the implementation of the research activities of the Department of Education and Culture-Population Education Program. Since its creation in 1972 the Population Education Program of the Research Unit has been conducting research studies on a centralized basis, seeking out research leads, conducting studies to determine the content and methodology of program curriculum, and assessing the effectiveness of training programs. During the past 3 years the Research Unit has also made significant progress in monitoring the program's activities - determining problems and needs, making recommendations on the basis of findings, and initiating action on such recommendations. 1 recommendation is to establish regional centers for research activities. If approved by the Commission on Population, the proposal will bring about major changes in the research program, the most significant of which will be the establishment of research centers in 12 teacher-training institutions all over the country. Additionally, these institutions will offer consultative services to researchers in the field. The reorganization of the research program, as well as the eventual restructuring of the Training and Curriculum Units, anticipates the withdrawal of foreign financial assistance by 1977. In the decentralized setup, basic results gathered by regional research centers can be immediately consumed by the training or curriculum staff based in these institutions. With decentralization and the related activities, the Population Education Program shows itself capable of responding to emerging research needs.     

Discovery learning: an ally in population education

"Discovery learning," as a teaching strategy, is being adopted by the Population Education Program of the Philippines. This approach, it is thought, will help students make up their own mind when it comes to family planning matters by urging them to look at population phenomena "through scientific eyes." It calls for the teacher to play a minor facilitative role rather than a dictatorial one. Numerous obstacles exist to the development of such a program, especially in the areas of teacher training, alteration of classroom logistics, and administrative support. Studies need to be made to determine the relationship between self-discovery and Filipino societal characteristics.     

Program evaluation: the experience in population education

The Population Education Program (PEP) of the Department of Education and Culture in the Philippines takes pride in a built-in evaluation system which assesses accomplishments primarily in light of objectives laid out and gathers feedback useful in improving future training programs. Its evaluation theoretically serves to measure 3 training dimensions -- before, during, and after each training course. Evaluation of both the 5- and 1-week training programs follows the same pattern. Pretraining evaluation is done by administering a pretest at the beginning of each course, which quantitatively measures trainees' baseline knowledge and attitudes. It is intended for the use of trainers in determining how the course should proceed. Assessment made while training is in progress (formative evaluation) is done through a steering committee meeting held at the end of a week or a day for the 5- and 1-week courses, respectively. The meetings focus on identifying weaknesses requiring immediate or future course revisions. At the end of the course, a posttest is given to measure positive or negative changes in the trainees' knowledge and attitudes. These changes are assumed to have been caused by training. Additional qualitative information is collected through an evaluation sheet containing open-ended questions on different aspects of the course. Problems of "who" should evaluate and "how to" evaluate are among current problems evident in practice, and a revised training scheme has been implemented to deal with these problems.     

The relationships between population and economy, and between population and education]

The relationship between population and economy is regarded seriously by China and other countries. This problem can be analyzed and studied under 2 aspects: 1) the influence of economic development on changes in population, and 2) the influence of population increases on economic development. Under the 1st aspect, improved living conditions, hygiene, and health care generally result in lowered mortality rates. Improved economic conditions in China also increased the birthrate and at the same time increased birth control among the people; the increased birthrate was due to more marriages after liberation. In economically advanced countries, due to high expenses in raising children, people tend to limit family sizes to 2 children/family. Under the 2nd aspect, population increases place strains on the food supply and nutritional requirements, especially when increases are too rapid. They also demand more educational resources and influence quality of education. As there are currently 210 million students in China, the quality of education suffers, particularly at the college level, since most of Chinese manpower, physical and financial resources are spent on primary and secondary education. In terms of housing, transportation, health care, and natural resources, they are all intimately related to and influenced by increases in population. Consequently, the living standard would be difficult to raise if population increases are too rapid. Since 1971, population increases have been incorporated into 5-yearly and later yearly national economic plans in China. The large Chinese population is a major obstacle in raising the Chinese economic level, hence a well-planned population control program is essential.     

The effect of new industries on changes in population]

Since 1978, China's Qionggang township (population, 8023; area, 3 sq. km), traditionally a fishing village on Jiangsu province's Huanghai coast, has been investing its local capital in an effort to establish several industrial enterprises including its own full-time local labor force. Currently, the rapidly expanding factory work force exceeds the number of fishermen. In addition to providing a statistically detailed chronology of the socioeconomic transition from a small fishing settlement to a rapidly growing industrial town, free-time activities, educational pursuits, and life styles of the newly formed labor force are discussed. From 1981 to 1983, Qionggang's industrial sector produced 4 metal vessels which were delivered directly to the town's fishing sector. With the town's newly generated economic wealth, commercial and public service facilities (i.e., a hospital, a kindergarten, several stores, a bank, and a credit union) have emerged. The economic development of Qionggang township has inspired other rural villages to clear and develop nearby land for similar industrial growth.     

The Philippine population program: a stocktaking

Summarizes findings of the Special Committee to Review the Philippine Population Program, created by the Commission on Population to evaluate population related programs and recommend program directions for the future. The Committee conducted a 2 part study: an indepth review and analysis of existing policies and programs, evaluation of their effectiveness, and identification of organizational, statistical and policy or program related gaps and bottlenecks; and recommendations on policy and program thrusts for the next 5 years. Along with specific recommendations on program operations, service delivery, and research, the Committee made a number of important policy recommendations. Chief among these were a call for the development of a broader popultion policy, not focused only on growth but encompassing demographic, manpower, and welfare components; recognition of the need for the program to advocate an ideal family size and a desirable age for marriage; and redesign of the program on a broad scale to integrate it fully with national development plans.     

The impact of class,education, and health care on infant mortality in a developing society: The case of rural Thailand

Demographic and social factors affecting infant mortality in rural northern Thailand are examined using log-linear modifiedmultiple regression models and data drawn from a representative sample of married couples in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai provinces. Demographic factors do not account for the effects of variations in parental ability or willingness to provide adequate infant care. The final model estimated incorporated both these social dimensions of child care. Parental ability, measured by father’s social class, mother’s health information, and local community development levels, continued to have significant independent effects upon infant survival. Parental willingness, measured by parent’s beliefs about intergenerational wealth transfers, no longer had a significant effect net of other social variables, but infant survival was still affected by whether both parents wanted a birth.     

The report of the royal commission on population: a review

In this review, the author surveys the Report of the Royal Commission on Population, and assesses the significance of the Commission's findings in the field of demographic analysis and policy.     

The effect of the new technological revolution on population dynamics]

The impact of modernization on population dynamics in China is examined. The author notes that the industrialization process involves the concentration of the population in urban areas and the mechanization of agriculture. The need to redistribute the urban population from major urban areas to smaller towns is noted.     

Retrospective information on health status and its application for population health measures

Healthy life expectancies are almost always calculated by using health data from cross-sectional surveys. This type of calculation is done partly because data from longitudinal surveys are not always available, and when they are available, they are collected at intervals that are longer than one year. In such cases, collecting health information retrospectively for the years skipped by the survey is useful. The main purpose of this paper is to show how retrospective health information can be used to estimate life expectancies in different health states. Healthy life expectancies are estimated with and without using data on retrospective health information, and the corresponding estimates are compared. The two sets of estimates are similar. We conclude that retrospectively assessed health information based on a one-year recall period can be used to estimate years of life in various health states and that estimates based on such information will closely approximate estimates based on concurrent health information.