Sociologists typically study various factors that affect human behaviors and social relationships and the diverse processes that either preserve or change people’s conduct. Population and urbanization are two key aspects that draw sociologists’ interest because they need to understand the intersections between demographics (study of population) and cities and the social, political, and economic relationships they present (Singh, 2024). According to functionalists, population growth normally encourages immigration, which leads to a higher struggle for finite resources and inequalities in society. Further, functionalists assert that various urban neighborhoods struggle to share the available cultural and social resources (Clark & Wu, 2021). However, a conflict theorist of sociology interested in creating and reproducing equality may examine how population demographics and urbanization rates impact the overall population and contribute to inequality and other social ills. Population and urbanization pertain to sociology because the changes in the size and composition of the population and urban cities lead to social, political, and economic relationships that drive changes in human behavior.
Population
Population is related to sociology because demographic changes are important in altering other aspects of society. Sociologists are concerned with studying the changes in a population’s size and composition (Sadigov, 2022). For instance, they explore fertility, birth, mortality, death, and migration rates. Fertility rates measure the number of children born in a particular region. The crude birthrate, which refers to the number of live births per 1,000 people per year, is a critical measure that sociologists use to determine the fertility rate (Singh, 2024). Conversely, the mortality rate considers the number of people who die. The examination of fertility and mortality rates helps sociologists to comprehend the overall growth that happens in the population. Furthermore, the study of migration and immigration, which refers to the movement of people into an area or out of a region, determines the population of such an area (Sadigov, 2022). The combined fertility, mortality, and migration rates make up a given population’s composition and demographic profile.
Sociologists agree that looking at the population demographics and issues is central to understanding human interactions. For instance, based on the Malthusian theory, war, famine, and diseases affect the human population and may lead to it exceeding the earth’s carrying capacity (Obiagwu & Obasi, 2022). Such factors are vital because they increase or decrease mortality rates and keep the population in check. Moreover, the factors are preventative checks that control the population by reducing fertility rates via birth control and celibacy (Singh, 2024). When the population increases at an exponential rate and given that people can only produce so much food in a given period, there are normally inadequate food supplies, and the likelihood of starvation increases (Sadigov, 2022). Such a sociological approach assumes that the human population will continue to grow, but with technological measures to increase food production, there will be mechanisms to match population growth with finite resources.
The demographics transition theory argues that countries will undergo a period of changing population growth because of five key stages. The first is the high mortality and birth rates, which describe the reality throughout human history. Since the mortality rate is high across all ages, particularly for children, the pyramid of population growth will grow narrow towards the top (Sadigov, 2022). The second stage entails a fall in mortality rate and high rates of birth. In such a phase of population growth, there is an increase in the number of people, and since their health has improved and fertility is high, the size of the population will proliferate (Singh, 2024). Stage three of the model argues that mortality will be low and the birth rates will begin to fall because many parents have chosen to have fewer children, and the economy has undergone structural changes that make children less economically viable (Singh, 2024). In stage four, the fertility and birth rates are low, while in stage five, the future of population growth is determined by what would happen to the fertility rates.
Population trends pertain to sociology because they affect human behavior. For instance, the social implications of population growth may augment the people or deplete the existing economic resources, leading to social ills. In addition, fertility, mortality, and migration are socially determined and determinizing; therefore, it is critical to examine the sociocultural factors that influence the population rates (Singh, 2024). In any case, population affects people’s opportunities for employment. High fertility rates may also affect living standards and related quality of life and education. The social processes and implications of demographic changes are vital for sociologists as they guide on the interventions that could be used to address any social issues that may arise. Birth rates, death rates, household formation, and migration rates are crucial indicators of social change that demonstrate the connection between population and sociology.
Urbanization
Urbanization is a key aspect of social change because it affects people’s social, political, and economic lives. The rise and growth of cities present a unique environment that can yield its own brand of behavior or become a microcosm of universal human conduct (Alvarez, 2021). Gideon Sjoberg, a sociologist, argues that for the development of a city to happen, three prerequisites must be met. The first one is that there must be a good environment with fresh water and a favorable climate (Roser, 2023). The second is technological advancements, which aid in producing surplus food to support those who do not do farming (Clark & Wu, 2021). Thirdly, cities should have strong social organizations to promote social stability and ensure a stable economy. According to sociological scholars, the shift from rural to urban living has various effects on society, including congestion in the cities, high unemployment rates, low living standards due to the growth of slums, and pressure to the limited social amenities (Alvarez, 2021). However, people tend to make their way into urban areas to experience better lives in the cities.
While urbanization is good because the cities are primarily the sites for innovation, excitement, and high culture, the urban centers have also been seen to entertain high crime, impersonality, and other social issues. Studies have shown that crime rates are higher in the inner zones or central regions of cities and lower in the outer edges (Roser, 2023). Moreover, crime rates are higher in zones where houses are close together and where poverty is much higher (Alvarez, 2021). Such studies illustrate that the social environment in cities brought about by urbanization affects people’s attitudes and behaviors. While many major cities in the US are filled with vibrant spaces, cultural attractions, and nightclubs, some are populated by people of diverse ethnicities and filled with abject poverty, filthy and dilapidated housing, dirty air, and traffic gridlocks, among other issues (Clark & Wu, 2021). Therefore, sociologists must study urbanization and its effect on people’s social life and interactions.
Sociology is concerned with urbanization because the quality of life in the cities is affected by the dwellers’ social backgrounds. For instance, people’s social classes, race/ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, and gender affect their lives in the urban centers. The intersection of these factors may lead to various kinds of social inequalities, and the quality of life people enjoy in the cities heavily relies on such dimensions (Clark & Wu, 2021). For instance, in US cities, white and wealthy residents access the best areas with social amenities; however, poor people of color typically encounter the worst aspects of city life by living in crime-prone areas and slums. Moreover, women and children who live in the slum areas of cities cannot travel freely because of the fear of rape and sexual assault (Alvarez, 2021). Furthermore, fear of muggings constrains the elderly from walking in the cities, whereas members of the LGBTQ community are subjected to homophobia and physical assaults. The sociodemographic profiles of city dwellers influence their experiences and quality of life, drawing sociologists’ attention.
The intersection of racism, economics, and human behavior in the cities makes urbanization have a major role to play in the study of sociology. Using the functionalist theory, which focuses on the city’s ecology, people will have diverse relationships with their built and natural physical environments. Further, the functionalism theory asserts that while urban centers may serve many functions for society, there are varying degrees to which a sense of community and social bonding exists among city dwellers (Clark & Wu, 2021). The conflicts theory, on the other hand, states that cities are mainly run by the political and economic elites who deploy resources they improperly obtain from the poor people of color. Therefore, the diversity in social backgrounds of the city dwellers and differing interests contribute to conflicts of norms and values (Hirschman & Garbes, 2021). However, symbolic interactionism argues that cities should not be solely viewed as chaotic places but rather as locations with strong norms and values. Urbanization relates to sociology because of the intersection of diverse social factors and human behavior in cities.
Population and urbanization are vital dimensions in sociology because their study leads to a better understanding of their consequences on people’s behavior and their social, political, and economic lives. Population growth and demographic measures using fertility rate, mortality rate, and migration are connected to sociology because such factors determine whether there are enough resources for people in society. For instance, increased population growth without a corresponding rise in food production could lead to hunger and starvation. Urbanization and the growth of citizens lead to overpopulation in the urban centers, resulting in dilapidated housing, poverty, traffic gridlock, dirty air, and high crime rates. With population growth and urbanization, new societal challenges that influence interactions between people and places emerge. Looking at the population and urbanization issues is central to sociologists’ understanding of human interactions. Further, using the Malthusian, demographic transition, functionalism, and conflict theories can enhance an understanding of how urbanization and population affect human behavior.
References
Alvarez, C. H. (2021). Military, race, and urbanization: Lessons of environmental injustice from Las Vegas, Nevada. Sociological Perspectives, 64(3), 325-342. https://doi.org/10.1177/0731121420946776
Clark, T. N., & Wu, C. (2021). Urbanization theorizing. Handbook of classical sociological theory, 421-438. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-78205-4_19
Hirschman, D., & Garbes, L. (2021). Toward an economic sociology of race. Socio-Economic Review, 19(3), 1171-1199. https://doi.org/10.1093/ser/mwz054
Obiagwu, D. O. V., & Obasi, U. (2022). A philosophical review of the Malthusian theory of population and wealth. Ulysses International Journal of Humanities and Contemporary Studies, 1(2). ISSN: 2707 -2311.
Roser, M. (2023). Demographic transition: Why is rapid population growth a temporary phenomenon? Our World in Data. https://ourworldindata.org/demographic-transition#article-citation
Sadigov, R. (2022). Rapid growth of the world population and its socioeconomic results. The Scientific World Journal, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/8110229
Singh, V. (2024). Population Ecology. In Textbook of Environment and Ecology (pp. 41-52). Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-8846-4_3
