1. Definition: CRUDE BIRTH RATE is the number of resident live births for a specified geographic area (nation, state, county, etc.) during a specified period (usually a calendar year) divided by the total population (usually mid-year) for that area and multiplied by 1,000.

In short Malthus theory predicts that if population grows much faster than food production, the growth is checked in the end by famine, disease, and war, a process that is called the Malthusian Crisis. Both works predicted disaster for humanity due to rapid population growth outstripping resource supply.

The theory that economic development generated by industrialization leads to population stability is called: the demographic transition.

The rate of population growth is the rate of natural increase combined with the effects of migration. Thus a high rate of natural increase can be offset by a large net out-migration, and a low rate of natural increase can be countered by a high level of net in-migration.

The Causes of Overpopulation

• Falling Mortality Rate. The primary (and perhaps most obvious) cause of population growth is an imbalance between births and deaths.
• Underutilized Contraception.
• Lack of Female Education.
• Ecological Degradation.
• Increased Conflicts.
• Higher Risk of Disasters and Pandemics.

Increasing population growth

1. Higher taxation of married couples who have no, or too few, children.
2. Politicians imploring the populace to have bigger families.
3. Tax breaks and subsidies for families with children.
4. Loosening of immigration restrictions, and/or mass recruitment of foreign workers by the government.

Rapid growth has led to uncontrolled urbanization, which has produced overcrowding, destitution, crime, pollution, and political turmoil. Rapid growth has outstripped increases in food production, and population pressure has led to the overuse of arable land and its destruction.