Demographic transition during the agricultural age means high infant and child mortality is accompanied by high birth rates and population increases occur?
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Yes, that is correct. During the agricultural age, the demographic transition refers to a pattern where societies experience high rates of infant and child mortality alongside high birth rates, leading to population increases.
To understand this concept in more detail, let's break it down step by step:
1. High infant and child mortality: In agricultural societies, particularly in earlier stages of development, there were numerous factors that contributed to high rates of infant and child mortality. These factors include limited access to healthcare, inadequate sanitation and hygiene practices, food scarcity, and disease outbreaks. As a result, a significant portion of newborns and young children did not survive to adulthood.
2. High birth rates: Despite high infant and child mortality, agricultural societies tended to have high birth rates. This can be attributed to several factors, including the need for additional labor in agricultural activities, economic reliance on larger families, lack of contraceptives or family planning methods, and cultural or religious beliefs that encouraged childbirth.
3. Population increases: The combination of high birth rates and relatively high death rates among infants and children meant that agricultural societies experienced population increases. Although many children did not survive to adulthood, enough survived to replace the older generation and contribute to population growth. Additionally, the lack of widespread contraceptive methods or family planning limited the ability to control population growth.
It's important to note that the demographic transition during the agricultural age was characterized by high birth and death rates, resulting in relatively slow population growth compared to later stages. However, this pattern gradually changed during the industrial age and beyond, as improvements in healthcare, sanitation, and nutrition led to a decline in infant and child mortality rates and eventually a shift towards lower birth rates.