Advanced Introduction to Demography

Elgar Advanced Introductions are stimulating and thoughtful introductions to major fields in the social sciences, business and law, expertly written by the world’s leading scholars. Designed to be accessible yet rigorous, they offer concise and lucid surveys of the substantive and policy issues associated with discrete subject areas.



Highlighting the power of multi-dimensional demography, this Advanced Introduction addresses the most consequential changes in our societies and economies using quantitative approaches. It defines three demographic theories with predictive power - demographic metabolism, transition and dividend - and repositions the discipline at the heart of social science.



Key features include:








Discussion of alternative demographic scenarios in the context of sustainable development


Introduction of national human resource management as the population policy for the 21st century


An outline of how the significant demographic theories discussed form the building blocks of a Unified Demographic Theory


An argument for cognitive changes as the primary driver of demographic transition rather than changing economic conditions, demonstrated by the impact of changing educational attainment structures.



This Advanced Introduction is a must-read for demographers around the globe for its concise summary of the concepts, theories and power of multi-dimensional demography, as well as students of demography at all levels. It will also be useful to academics in other social sciences, including human geography, development studies and sociology scholars interested in what state-of-the-art demography has to offer their fields.