Research Committee on
Sociology of Population, RC41
Program Coordinators
- Elena BASTIDA-GONZALEZ, Florida International University, USA, ebastida@fiu.edu
- Claudia SERNA, Florida International University, USA, cserna@fiu.edu
- Gerardo ZAMORA, Universidad Pública de Navarra, Spain, g.zamora.monge@gmail.com
On-line abstracts submission
June 3, 2013 - September 30, 2013 24:00 GMT.A direct submission link will be provided in due course.
If you have questions about any specific session, please feel free to contact the Session Organizer for more information.
Proposed sessions
in alphabetical order:
Ethnicity, Multiculturalism and Social Cohesion
Session OrganizerFarhat YUSUF, Australia, farhat.yusuf@gmail.com
Session in English
Many countries have ethnic populations. These may be persons living in a country who were born in some other country, or persons who, though born in their country of residence, are different from the majority population in terms of their social, cultural or religious norms.
Countries such as the UK and many in Europe have large segments of their populations consisting of overseas-born people; while countries such as China, Malaysia and Sri Lanka have distinct ethnic groups living in these countries for centuries. Some countries such as Australia and Canada have adopted policies of multiculturalism, and encourage integration rather than the complete assimilation of migrants. Social cohesion is an important consideration in adopting such policies. Papers concerning the demography of ethnic groups, as well as those dealing with the interactions between ethnicity, and multiculturalism, ethnicity and social cohesion or with all three would be welcome. While authors are encouraged to use quantitative data based on censuses, surveys or other sources, papers utilizing only qualitative data will also be considered.
Gender Mortality and Morbidity Inequality
Session OrganizerOfra ANSON, Ben Gurion University, Israel, ofra@bgu.ac.il
Session in English
The fact that, in most societies, women survive longer but are less healthy than men at least throughout their adult life has been well documented. This paradox has been under debate for more than half a century now, without really being resolved. Yet beyond the paradox, there are number of questions which puzzle the scientific community:
- At what age do health differential start?
- At what age does gender gradient of mortality and morbidity reach its pick?
- Do gender mortality and morbidity differences converge at old age?
- Do the greater gender behavioral similarities (such as education attainment, labor force participation, occupational change, etc.) affect gender differences in causes of death and patterns of morbidity?
- Are men’s and women’s life expectancy and burden of disease differentially affected by the second and third demographic transitions?
- To what degree do resources (i.e. education, income and social support) differentially affect the longevity and health of men and women? These are the topics which will be dealt with in this session.
Gender-Related Aspects of Fertility
Session OrganizersAndrzej KULCZYCKI, University of Alabama, USA, andrzej@uab.edu
Favour C. NTOIMO, Federal University Oye, Nigeria, ntoimof@yahoo.com
Session in English
This session encourages submissions on all issues related to all aspects of fertility and reproductive health which emphasize their gender-related, sociological dimensions. Papers may stress, for example, topics concerning autonomy and other aspects of female empowerment, including adolescents and other vulnerable groups; male roles in fertility; fertility assessed at the couple level; the measurement of fertility and its component behaviors; fertility determinants, consequences, and fertility-related beliefs and attitudes; as well as reproductive health issues (including family planning, maternal and child health, sexuality, and infertility). Empirical case studies and comparative research studies are equally welcome, be it focusing on developed or developing countries.
Global Issues in Family Research
Session OrganizersMaria Carolina TOMAS, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil, mariacarolt@gmail.com
Gerardo ZAMORA, Universidad Pública de Navarra, Spain, g.zamora.monge@gmail.com
Session in English
Family is an important sociological and demographic unit. It is the main locus for social and biological population reproduction. In the past decades, this sphere has changed a lot. Some authors even consider a Second Demographic Transition in course. Instances of these changes are found in the increase in cohabitation, late marriage, delay of parenthood and further fertility decrease. Topics that illustrate the many resulting consequences of these changes will be explored, such as, the evolution of women`s economic and social roles, children outcomes in a context of increasing family dissolution, and particularly new family arrangements resulting in the higher presence of children from partners` previous marriages.
One salient and very important consequence of the changing family structure is the increasing number of childless individuals and couples. Today most childless individuals over the age of 65 differ greatly from the “new” and upcoming generations of childless persons and, therefore, it is important to ask whether this phenomenon is connected to population aging. Moreover, it is not fully clear, to what extent these changes are spread over the globe, and how local cultural norms help to explain them. Thus, this session will focus on descriptions and analysis of family changes, including involuntary and voluntary childlessness, and the relevance of such research for policies addressing demographic change.
Impact of Rapid Population Growth on the Environment
Session OrganizersGloria Luz M. NELSON, University of the Philippines Los Baños, Philippines, glmnelson2001@yahoo.com.hk
Urgasen PANDEY, Srkpgpcollegeagra University, India, us_pandey123@yahoo.com
Session in English
The framing of the population-environment relationship led to opposing views. Population growth is either detrimental or advantageous to the environment. The rapid population growth in the developing regions where at least 3/4 of the world population resides provides evidences of environmental deterioration. There is, for example, an increase in air and water pollution especially in the urban areas. Even wealthy countries where there is relatively slow population growth are also concern in overshooting their “carrying capacity”. The climate change phenomenon, in turn, has further linked population with the environment. The extreme weather conditions, from drought to flooding has threatened food security, increased poverty and displaced many populations worldwide. This raises some legitimate concerns like, what are the changes in population trends associated with environment? How do the populations in the developed and developing regions cope with various types of environmental changes? This session welcomes papers that deal with this broad topic that links population with environment.
Impact of Violence in Latin American Demographics
Impacto de la violencia en la demografía latinoamericana
Session OrganizersGuillermo Julián GONZALEZ PEREZ, Mexico, ggonzal@cencar.udg.mx
María Guadalupe VEGA LOPEZ, Mexico
Session in English/Spanish
Latin America has traditionally been considered one of the most violent areas in the world, with high rates of homicide, suicide and accidents in many countries of the region. The activity of organized crime groups joined the paramilitaries, guerrillas and the armed response of governments, as well as a culture that accepts the solution of many interpersonal conflicts through violence, has caused numerous deaths and significant population movements. The objective of this session is to analyze how interpersonal and collective violence affects the structure of the population, its geographic location and the levels of mortality, fertility and migration and therefore, as this situation becomes a challenge for Latin American societies.
América Latina ha sido tradicionalmente considerada como una de las zonas más violentas del mundo, con altas tasas de homicidios, suicidios y accidentes en muchos de los países de la región. A la actividad del crimen organizado se suman la de grupos paramilitares, las guerrillas así como la respuesta armada de los gobiernos, y además, una cultura que acepta la solución de muchos conflictos interpersonales por medios violentos, todo lo cual ha provocado numerosas muertes e importantes desplazamientos poblacionales. El objetivo de esta sesión es analizar como la violencia interpersonal y colectiva afecta la estructura de la población, su ubicación geográfica, los niveles de mortalidad, fecundidad y migración y por lo tanto, como esta situación se convierte en un desafío para las sociedades latinoamericanas.
Organizational Consequences of Aging and Declining Populations
Session OrganizersWalter BARTL, Cristina BESIO, and Reinhold SACKMANN, Institut für Soziologie, Germany, walter.bartl@soziologie.uni-halle.de
Session in English
Today, demographic change in most developed societies means aging and sometimes declining populations. Demographic research has obvious strengths in explaining causes of demographic change but there is comparatively little systematic research on its (possible) consequences. Especially research on consequences of declining population numbers is still scarce. However, in modern societies, organizations are obviously crucial for coping with uncertainties and challenges resulting from aging and declining populations. Nevertheless, population and organization studies have only occasionally deliberated jointly about organizational consequences of aging and declining populations. In this context, territoriality of organizational design/jurisdiction and migration across territorial borders seem to be intriguing topics for joint deliberation.
The aim of the session is to fill this gap by addressing the following questions:
- Which organizations are especially vulnerable to aging and declining populations? Theoretically, the desired demographic structure of an organization follows largely from its goals, or more broadly from its formal structure.
- How well are specific organizations able to control their own demographic structure in the face of ageing and declining populations? According to Stinchcombe et al. (1968), the degree of control an organization has over its demography is partly determined by the degree its jurisdiction is defined in territorial terms. However, in a more and more globalized world that is increasingly less the case – except for certain public service providers. How do individual organizations cope with demographic change?
- How responsive are specific organizational populations to demographic decline?
- Which consequences from demographic change result for (the demography of) individual organizations and entire organizational populations?
Whereas Organizational Demography addresses demographic change in individual organizations, the Organizational Ecology analyses change in organizational populations. In difference to nation states, organizations are quite often founded, merged, split-up or dissolved. From an organizational point of view, demographic change increases the likelihood of changing sizes of demand, participation (e.g. in education or politics) and labor supply in a certain territory. Declining numbers of (sub-) populations are likely to induce waves of organizational dissolutions and mergers in a certain territory (e.g. business mergers, school closures, administrative territorial reforms).
However, other theoretical perspectives on organizational consequences of aging and declining populations (e.g. systems theory, governance approaches) might be fruitful for empirical social research as well.
This session is open to different types of conceptual papers and theoretically grounded empirical studies based on qualitative and/or quantitative methods.
Population, Gender Inequality and International Migration
Session OrganizersIndira RAMARAO, India, ramaraoindira@gmail.com
R.B. PATIL, India, patilsuk@gmail.com
Session in English
The Human Development Report of the UNDP in shifting from mechanical indicators of economic progress as GNP and GDP to the well-being and freedoms actually enjoyed by populations. The Human Development Report has three distinct departures: a) the development and use of gender-equity-sensitive indicators; b) the formulation and utilization of measures of gender equality and inequality; and c) the identification of efforts and contributions made by women that go unrecognized in standard national income and employment statistics.
Population growth and gender inequality are two entities, yet concurrent and relative terms encompassing many other factors.Gender inequality is a unequal treatment or perceptions of individuals based on gender. Gender inequality is socially constructed. Gender inequality manifests through race, culture, politics, country, and economic situation. It is a causal factor of violence against women.
Increasing population growth has led to increasing migration across national borders.
International communities are now visible segments of populations of many countries. Research on migrant groups has also been undertaken from a multi-dimensional perspective. But these studies have by and large concentrated on male migrants, and treated women as dependents of men who are projected as ‘primary migrants’. Gender is an issue that has commonly been side-lined in studies on migration.
Migration across one’s national borders per se throws up several challenges in one’s life. While migrant communities, in general experience a sense of alienation, women in these communities not only have to make adjustments to new geographical locations, but also to changed social spaces. International migration puts extra pressure on women because they need to make multiple adjustments in totally new situations. It is in the context of this theme that the present session is planned to be organized.
Factors such as age, economic status and group networks have a key role to play in determining the situations in which women in these communities are placed. It is the discussion of the varied ways by which gender determines the experiences of women in international migrant communities that is the focus of this session.
Papers are invited for the session under the following sub-themes:
- Population growth and gender inequality.
- Gender Inequality and health.
- Gender Inequality and Wage discrimination, occupational segregation, education, and politics.
- Population and Gender based violence
- Gender Inequality in Human Development Indicators.
- Gender in theoretical discourses on international migration
- Inter-group differences in negotiating the gendered impact of migration
- Youth, gender and unequal power relations: Coping strategies
- Labour market operations and economic empowerment opportunities for women in migrant communities
- Naturalization of migrant groups: Embedded inequalities Papers on cross cutting themes are also welcome.
RC41 Business Meeting
RC41 Roundtable: Global Population Challenges in an Unequal World
Session OrganizerElena BASTIDA-GONZALEZ, Florida International University, USA, ebastida@fiu.edu
Session in English
This roundtable invites participants to identify and discuss demographic and institutional transitions that have a bearing on the challenges facing an unequal world. In particular topics are welcome that lead to a thoughtful, but provocative, discussion of the influence these processes exercise, e.g., changing population structures, migration, on social institutions; and vice versa changing family values and norms, advances or declines in political, religious, gender or racial/ethnic participation on demographic processes. Abstracts for discussion are encouraged that highlight these processes globally or in distinct world regions.
The Effect of Migration on Aging
El efecto de la migración en el envejecimiento
Session OrganizerVerónica MONTES DE OCA ZAVALA, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico, vmoiis@gmail.com
Session in English/Spanish
Of the three major demographic processes research on aging has examined the impact of mortality and fertility; however, the impact of migration has been rarely investigated. Yet, migration has a major influence on family support systems and intergenerational relations, e.g. transference issues. This session aims to discuss the impact of migration on aging populations from a sociological and interdisciplinary perspective which seeks to complement current findings in anthropology and demography. Another important phenomenon is aging abroad and the return of migrants to their countries of birth at a late migration and aging stage.
En los estudios sobre envejecimiento se ha analizado demográficamente el papel de la caída de la mortalidad como de la fecundidad, pero en pocas ocasiones de analiza el impacto de la migración. Las consecuencias en el sistema de apoyo familiar, las relaciones intergeneracionales e intergeneracionales se han modificado, las transferencias entre otros temas. Esta sesión busca discutir el impacto de la migración en el envejecimiento de la población desde un enfoque sociológico pero también interdisciplinario que complemente los hallazgos con la antropología y la demografía. Otro fenómeno muy importante es el proceso de quienes envejecen en el extranjero o de los migrantes de retorno a sus países que también vinculan pero en un momento tardío la migración y el envejecimiento.
Trend in Current Population Research: Open Session
Session OrganizerEncarnación ARACIL RODRIGUEZ, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain, enaracil@cps.ucm.es
Session in English
This is an open session that welcomes proposals for current and important topics in population research that are not considered in the preceding session topics. All relevant topics will be considered and review.
Joint Sessions
Click on the session title to read its description.Japan’s Experience with Population Aging: Policy Challenges and Innovations
Joint session of RC11 Sociology of Aging [host committee] and RC41 Sociology of Population
Population Aging in East and Southeast Asia: Challenges and Opportunities
Joint session of RC11 Sociology of Aging and RC41 Sociology of Population [host committee]
The Demographic Reproduction of Social Stratification
Joint session of RC28 Social Stratification and RC41 Sociology of Population [host committee]
