UN Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs,
with support from the UN Population Fund (UNFPA)
|
| UN Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, with support from the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) |
|
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This newsletter is being made available by the Population Information
Network (POPIN) of the United Nations Population Division/DESIPA and the
Population Reference Bureau, with funding from the Andrew W. Mellon
Foundation.
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Population Today
Monthly newsletter of the Population Reference Bureau
October 1996, Vol 24, No. 10
Please note: The graphics that appeared in the printed copy
of Population Today have not been included here. For a complete
copy of Population Today, send $2.00 to Population Reference
Bureau,1875 Connecticut Ave., NW, Suite 520, Washington, D.C.
20009.
In this issue: ** U.S. Poverty Myths Explored ** African
Men Want More Children Than Their Wives ** A Guide to
Population-Related Home Pages on the World Wide Web **
Spotlight on Latvia **
*****
U.S. Poverty Myths Explored: Many Poor Work Year-Round, Few
Still Poor After Five Years
By William P. O'Hare
The recent public debate over welfare reform was often
influenced by myths, anecdotes, and misunderstandings rather
than by the facts about U.S. poverty.
Recent data show that about one of every seven Americans
lives in poverty today, up from one of nine during the early
1970s. The U.S. poverty population totals about 38 million,
approximately 15 million above the 1973 number. Another 25
million people hover just above the official poverty
threshold, often just one paycheck away from being poor.
Poverty rates are highest among children, African
Americans, Hispanics, high school dropouts, and young
families. Many of these high-risk groups are growing because
of social changes that have increased divorce and out-of-
wedlock childbearing, and demographic trends such as
immigration that have increased the minority population.
The passage of welfare reform legislation may signal a
new era in the history of government welfare programs. But the
reform of the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC)
program in particular will have little effect on reducing the
official poverty rate. Only one-fifth of the 23 million adults
and half of the 15 million children living below the poverty
line are enrolled in the AFDC program. Also, welfare by itself
does not provide enough cash to pull a family's income above
the poverty line. Finally, many of the poor who move off
welfare through employment will simply become part of the
"working poor."
Public perceptions about the poor and welfare programs
include many misunderstandings. Some common misperceptions
include:
Myth 1. The vast majority of the poor are blacks or Hispanics.
Poverty rates are higher among blacks and Hispanics than among
other racial and ethnic groups, but they do not make up the
majority of the poor. Nearly one-third (31 percent) of African
Americans and Hispanics were poor in 1994_more than three
times the rate for non-Hispanic whites. But non-Hispanic
whites are the most numerous racial and ethnic group in the
poverty population. They make up 48 percent of the poor, while
African Americans make up 27 percent, and Hispanics 22 percent
of the poor.
Myth 2. Most people are poor because they do not want to work.
Many of the poor do not work because they are not in the
traditional working ages. Half are too old or too young to
work: About 40 percent of the poor are under age 18; another
10 percent are age 65 and older. About one-quarter of poor
adults have a work disability.
Many poor people have jobs, but earn below-poverty wages.
Nearly 6 million poor adults (ages 18 to 64) worked for at
least half the year during 1994_amounting to about 30 percent
of the working-age poverty population.
Myth 3. Poor families are trapped in a cycle of poverty that
few escape.
The poverty population is quite dynamic_people move in and out
of poverty every year. About one-fifth of those who were poor
in 1992 were out of poverty by the following year, according a
Census Bureau survey. Only 5 percent were poor for all of
1992 and 1993.
Another study, which followed 5,000 families for more than 20
years, found that 12 percent of the poor remained in poverty
for five or more consecutive years. More than half of the
poverty spells experienced by people in the study between 1968
and 1987 lasted one year or less.
Myth 4. Most of the poor are single mothers and their
children.
Single-mother families have high poverty rates: Nearly 40
percent of people in female-headed families were poor, more
than five times the rate for married-couple families. But
just 38 percent of the poor population live in a female-headed
family. About 34 percent of the poor live in married-couple
families, 22 percent live alone or with nonrelatives, and the
remaining 6 percent live in some other family setting.
Myth 5. The majority of the poor live in inner-city
neighborhoods.
Less than half (42 percent) of the poor live in central city
areas, and less than one-quarter (23 percent) live in high-
poverty inner-city areas. Over one-third (36 percent) of the
poor live in the suburbs, and over one-fifth (22 percent) live
outside metropolitan areas.
Myth 6. The poor live off government welfare.
Welfare accounts for only about one-fourth of the income of
poor adults. Social Security, which goes to all qualifying
individuals regardless of income, contributes about 22 percent
of the income for poor adults. Nearly half of the income
received by poor adults comes from wages or other work-related
activities such as a pension. About three-quarters of the poor
received some type of welfare benefit in 1994 such as
Medicaid, Food Stamps, or housing assistance, but only about
40 percent received cash welfare payments such as Aid to
Families with Dependent Children.
Myth 7. Antipoverty programs are designed to reduce poverty.
Most government welfare programs are geared to sustain the
poor, not pull them out of poverty. Approximately 10 percent
of the welfare budget goes to education and training programs
designed to help people improve their earning potential. About
3 million people were lifted out of poverty by cash welfare
assistance from the government in 1994, which lowered the
poverty rate by one-half a percentage point.n
For more information, see "A New Look at Poverty in
America," by William P. O'Hare, Population Bulletin 51, no. 2,
Sept. 1996. Price: $8.50 per copy, includes postage and
handling. To order, call 1-800-877-9881.
*****
African Men Want More Children Than Their Wives
By Victoria Ebin
Men in Africa play a central role in decisions relating
to family size and family planning, according to a new PRB
report. For contraceptive use to become more widespread, their
support and involvement is crucial.
Men and Family Planning in Africa reports that in 12 African
countries surveyed, most men are more likely to want more
children than their wives want (see figure for selected
countries).
Not only do men want more children, they have more say
in the number of children a couple has. A 1991 study of family
size preferences in Nigeria found that 90 percent of husbands
and 80 percent of wives said that husbands' views carry more
weight in family decisions than wives'.
When it comes to family planning, men's support affects
the adoption, choice, and correct use of contraception, even
"female methods" such as the pill and vaginal methods. Men
participate in family planning in two ways: by supporting
their partners' decision to use family planning or by
practicing a male method (condom, vasectomy, withdrawal, or
periodic abstinence). Male involvement in family planning is
particularly important given their longer reproductive years
and their tendency to have more partners than women.
Africa has lagged behind other parts of the world in
adopting modern family planning methods. In sub-Saharan
Africa, the population has more than tripled since 1950 and
only one-tenth of married couples use modern methods of family
planning, compared to more than half in Asia and Latin
America. High fertility rates in Africa are correlated with
the highest maternal and infant mortality rates in the world.
To improve women's and children's health and slow
population growth, family planning programs are expanding
their focus to include men. The PRB report explores data on
men's attitudes toward family planning, their views on the
ideal number of children, and their knowledge and use of
contraceptive methods. It is based on the findings of the
Demographic and Health Surveys and other recent studies.
The report highlights how men's involvement can lead to
more open discussion between husbands and wives, which is
associated with greater use of family planning. In Egypt, a
survey found that 79 percent of husbands had discussed the
subject with their wives and 50 percent were using family
planning. In Niger, where 7 percent of couples were using
family planning, only 25 percent of couples had discussed it.
Men who use family planning tend to be more educated and
live in cities. Among husbands in Ghana who had attended
secondary school or higher, 83 percent practice family
planning (traditional or modern, male or female methods),
compared to 10 percent of those who had no education. This
pattern is similar to links researchers have long observed
between women's education and family planning use. Urban
residents in most countries are more likely to practice family
planning than rural residents.
Reliance on female methods of family planning has
increased over the past decade. In Ghana and Kenya in the late
1980s, half of all husbands practicing family planning used
traditional methods that rely on men's
participation_withdrawal and periodic abstinence. Today, in 9
out of 12 countries, husbands rely predominantly on female
methods, such as the pill, IUD, and vaginal methods.
Researchers are now looking into methods_especially
reversible ones, such as vaccines, hormonal injections, and
implants_that will provide contraceptive options for men.
Family planning programs already are expanding to include men.
As one of the many efforts underway to give men an opportunity
to exercise more reproductive responsibility, Kenya has
introduced male-only clinics to encourage men to seek family
planning services on their own.
Men and Family Planning in Africa is available in
English and French. Price $5. Contact: Circulation, PRB, 1875
Connecticut Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20009-5728; (800) 877-
9881.
*****
A Guide to Population-Related Home Pages on the World Wide Web
The number of population-related home pages is
increasing steadily and the information contained in them
growing and changing constantly. The Australian National
University's Demography & Population Studies World-Wide Web
Virtual Library (http://coombs.anu.edu. au/Res Facilities
Demography Page. html) currently links to 155 demographic
information facilities worldwide. Some sites have helpful
indexes or local search engines to find information at the
site. We've highlighted a few outstanding home pages from
government, international organizations, universities, and
nongovernmental agencies.
U.S. POPULATION INFORMATION
The Census Bureau's Home Page
http://www.census.gov/
"The Official Statistics" for the U.S. population. The
vast amount of data is indexed by subject, including aging,
fertility, Census 1990, college enrollment, income,
households, immigration, labor force, population topics,
poverty, and race. Selected tables from the latest Statistical
Abstract of the United States and The County and City Data
Book are included. Lengthy reports in .pdf format need the
Adobe Acrobat Reader. This home page is linked to other
population websites.
Census State Data Centers
http://www.census.gov/sdc/www/
Access the home pages of the U.S. state data centers
from this site. Twenty-one states have websites at this time.
They provide population estimates, projections, employment,
income, business, and economic indicators at the state,
county, and city level.
National Center for Health Statistics
http://www.cdc.gov/nchswww/nchshome.htm
Most of the reports generated by NCHS are available in
full text, including Monthly Vital Statistics Report for data
on births, deaths, marriages, and divorces in the United
States by state, race, or age, as well as total fertility
rates and life expectancy, etc. Other reports include Health,
United States 1995; Healthy People 2000 Newsletter; and
Advanced Data From Vital and Health Statistics. These lengthy
reports are in .pdf format and need the Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Reports dating back to 1994 are available at this time.
National Institute on Aging (NIA)
http://www.nih.gov/nia/
The NIA home page gives quick access to information on
aging, news releases, descriptions of grant programs, and
links to the NIH home page and related sites.
American Demographics, Inc.
http://www.marketingtools.com
U.S. demographics and marketing information contained in
American Demographics, Marketing Tools, The Numbers News,
Marketing Power, and The Marketing Tools Directory are full-
text searchable. Abstracts of all articles and the full text
of selected articles are included.
WORLD POPULATION INFORMATION
United Nations Population Information Network (POPIN)
http://www.undp.org/popin/popin.htm
World, regional, and country- level demographic trends
as monitored by the United Nations are available at this site.
Serves as a good resource for data on historical world
population growth, urbanization prospects, child mortality
estimates, impact of AIDS in Africa, and world abortion
policies. Conference information and documents can be found
here. Regional reports and newsletters such as the East-West
Center's Asia-Pacific Population & Policy and the Pan American
Health Organization's Country Health Profiles are available in
full text. Linked to many other population home pages.
Demographic and Health Surveys
http://www.macroint.com/dhs/
One of the primary sources for information on fertility,
family planning, maternal and child health, and household
living conditions in developing countries. Fact sheets that
summarize the findings of national surveys are provided. The
status of surveys and the full text of the DHS Newsletter are
also included.
Population Reference Bureau
http://www.prb.org/prb/
For demographic statistics on more than 190 countries,
query the 1996 World Population Data Sheet. Population issues
are covered in the full-text newsletters Population Today,
Global Stewardship Newsletter, and Aging Today. Quick
overviews of world and U.S. demographic trends are also
included. Links are made to many other population-related
websites.
PRB is planning to introduce a super population home
page with links to all the major population sites on the World
Wide Web.
Population Index
http://popindex.princeton. edu/
This on-line version of Princeton University's Office of
Population Research journal offers an index to articles
published in approximately 400 journals in population and
related fields. The data base is searchable by author, subject
matter, geographical region, and year of publication (1986-
current). A bibliographic citation and summary of each article
are provided.
U.S. Census Bureau's International Programs Center (IPC)
http://www.census.gov/ftp/pub/ipc/www/
An international data base provides, for all countries
of the world, statistics such as population by age and sex,
life tables, migration, marital status, family planning,
ethnicity, religion, language, literacy, labor force, income,
households, and birth, death, and infant mortality rates.
Studies about AIDS/HIV infection in population groups in
developing countries compiled in the HIV/AIDS Surveillance
Database can be installed on your personal computer. Summary
tables and maps are available at the site. A world population
clock gives the Census Bureau's current world population
estimate. Microcomputer software and applications for
demographers are also available at this site.
POPLINE
http://www.charm.net/~ccp/popwel.html
Access information about POPLINE (POPulation Information
on LINE), the world's largest bibliographic population data
base of published and unpublished literature in the field.
Subscription information to the on-line service or CDROM
version is provided. The results of a POPLINE Search of The
Month done on a specific topic are available at the site,
including previous months' search results.
INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT INFORMATION
Linkages Home Page
http://www.iisd.ca/linkages
Maintained by the International Institute for
Sustainable Development (IISD), this home page serves as an
electronic clearinghouse for international conferences related
to environment and development. Full-text documents from UN
conferences such as The Fourth World Conference on Women,
World Summit for Social Development, International Conference
on Population and Development, and Conference on Human
Settlements (Habitat II) are available.
USAID Home Page
http://www.info.usaid.gov/
Information about the programs and achievements of the
United States Agency for International Development in
developing countries can be found here.
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Home Page
http://www.undp.org/
A poverty clock ticks off the number of persons in
poverty worldwide. Selected highlights from the annual Human
Development Report are available. Linked to other UN and
related organizations.
The World Bank Home Page
http://www.worldbank.org/
A "Digital Library" offers selected World Bank
publications in full text or lengthy summaries. Selected
tables from the latest World Development Report are available.
A local search engine helps to locate information contained in
the vast amount of other publications. Data from older issues
of the annual Social Indicators of Development are available
at http://www.ciesin.org/IC/wbank/sid-home.html.
POPULATION ASSOCIATIONS
PAA Affairs
http://www.pop.psu.edu:70/1s/library/PAA_Affairs
Activities of the Population Association of America and
its members are reported in this full-text newsletter of the
association.
Association of Population Libraries and Information Centers-
International (APLIC-I)
gopher://gopher.undp.org/11/ ungophers/popin/regional/
namerican/aplic
Contains information about APLIC-I and the full-text
APLIC-I Communicator newsletter. To locate the journal
holdings of APLIC-I member libraries, consult the Union List
of Serials at gopher://info.pop.psu.edu/11s/
library/union_list.
Association of Population Centers
http://www.pop.psu.edu/Demography/demography.html#apc
Links to the home pages of university population centers
and nongovernmental organizations that have formed this
association. In addition to information about programs, areas
of research, and faculty, some of the university population
centers provide resources such as their working papers in full
text, data archives, and library holdings at their web sites.
All have links to other related sites.
COLLECTIONS OF POPULATION WEB SITES
Internet Resources for Demographers
http://members.tripod.com/~tgryn/demog.html
A collection of demographic Internet sites organized
under North American Demography, International Demography,
General Demography, and Mailing Lists.
Population and Reproductive Health
http://www.pitt.edu/HOME/GHNet/poprepro.htm
A collection of U.S. and international websites grouped
under the following topics: Contraception, Family Planning,
Fertility, Population Research, International Resources, and
Journals and Newsletters.
Directory of Population Organizations
Population Organizations: Finder's Guide
gopher://cde2.ssc.wisc.edu:70/00/addazlis
A comprehensive international address list of population
and related organizations, including e-mail addresses and
telephone, fax, and telex numbers. Compiled by the University
of Wisconsin-Madison's Center for Demography and Ecology, it
is revised and updated at least every six months.
*****
LATVIA
By Andrea Silgailis
Population: 2.5 million
Land area: 24,938 square miles
Births: 9 per 1,000 population
Deaths: 16 per 1,000 population
Infant deaths: 19 per 1,000 live births
Natural increase: -0.75 percent/year
Total fertility: 1.2 births per woman
Life expectancy: 60(male)/73(female)
Capital: Riga
Situated on the eastern banks of the Baltic Sea, the
Republic of Latvia is surrounded by Lithuania, Belarus,
Russia, and Estonia. Highlands and surrounding planes are
favorable for agriculture and forestry.
During World War II, the Soviet Union forcibly annexed
Latvia. Under Soviet rule, an active policy of colonization by
non-Latvians greatly decreased the proportion of Latvians to
about half the total. Even in 1995, Latvians still comprise
only 54.8 percent of the population, compared to 75 percent in
1935. The balance consists primarily of Russians (33 percent),
Belarussians, and Ukrainians.
Since independence, there has been an exodus of other
nationalities, totaling a net outflow of -27,900 in 1993 and -
18,800 in 1994. A majority_almost 50 percent_of the population
lives in or around the capital city of Riga, an important port
near the mouth of the Daugava river.
The collapse of communism and the resulting change to a
free market system have been difficult. Until 1991, Latvia's
economy was merged with the Soviet Unions' centrally planned
system. Since the break-up, trade has plummeted and hard
currency has disappeared. Economic hardships have resulted in
lower standards of health care, a lack of good nutrition, high
prices for necessities, and a general national pessimism.
During Soviet rule, industry replaced agriculture
as the dominant force in Latvia's economy. Manufacturing,
primarily machine building and electronics, comprised 38
percent of GDP in 1992 and employed 27 percent of the
population in 1991. Industry as a whole made up 45 percent of
GDP. Agriculture, mainly pig breeding and dairy farming, was
25 percent of GDP in 1992 and employed 18 percent of the
population.
Environmental problems include untreated sewage dumped
into the Daugava River and high levels of industrial effluent
and pollution. In 1989, protests against industrial pollution
helped spur Latvia's independence movement. Latvia's
unexploited natural gas deposits, which could be among the
most plentiful in the world, are a possible source of revenue.
Latvia's total fertility rate (TFR, the number of
children born to a woman in her lifetime) of 1.2 children per
woman is one of the world's lowest, along with Spain and
Italy. That, and a higher death rate, have given it the
distinction of having the world's lowest rate of natural
decrease: -0.75 percent. Numerous reasons are offered to
explain the fertility decline, especially the current
political and economic instability, the sharp decrease in
marriages, and increased infertility. In Riga, the TFR appears
to have dropped to 1.0.
Abortion also plays a role in Latvia's low fertility
rate. In 1994, 32,500 abortions were performed, compared with
24,256 live births the same year. Abortion is the most common
form of birth control in Latvia. Other methods include
withdrawal, the rhythm method, and abstinence. About 15
percent of Latvian women use modern contraception, including
IUDs and birth control pills.
While contraceptives are available in Latvian
pharmacies, they are expensive and therefore inaccessible for
many women. A prejudice against hormonal contraception remains
from past inaccurate information regarding threats to women's
health.
Family planning providers are now beginning to educate
more Latvians on modern contraception and reproductive health.
In this arena, Latvia and other former Soviet republics differ
from developing countries: the primary focus is on education
to lower the abortion rate rather than the fertility rate.
*****
NEWS and RESOURCES
Position open: population and peace
The University of Maryland is seeking applicants for the
new Anwar Sadat Chair for Population, Development, and Peace
to direct research and outreach that promotes peace in
troubled world regions. This tenured position will begin Aug.
1997; the application deadline is Dec. 31, 1996. For complete
application information, contact Jonathan Wilkenfeld,
Department of Government and Politics, University of Maryland,
College Park, MD 20742; (301) 405-4160; fax (301) 314-9690; e-
mail jwilkenf@bss2.umd.edu.
Sexuality research fellowships
The Social Science Research Council (SSRC) announces the
1997 competition of the Sexuality Research Fellowship Program,
funded by the Ford Foundation.
SSRC will consider only joint applications (between an
applicant and a research advisor or mentor). Application
deadline: Dec. 13, 1996. For complete guidelines, including
research priorities, write SSRC, Sexuality Research Fellowship
Program, 810 Seventh Ave., New York, NY 10019; (212) 377-2700.
Reach a wide audience: Write for PRB
Are you researching a U.S. or international topic that
is timely, of interest to a broad audience, and that addresses
an important public policy issue? If so, send us an outline.
Submissions will be considered for publication in one of three
formats:
* Population Bulletin (60-70 page double-spaced manuscript),
for broad, population-related topics;
* Population Today (2-5 page double-spaced manuscript), for
PRB's monthly newsletter; or
* Population Trends and Public Policy (35-40 page double-
spaced manuscript), on a specific policy area.
Manuscripts are peer reviewed to meet our standards for
accuracy and objectivity.
PRB is a nonadvocacy organization. Papers must be
written in a nontechnical style and present a balanced and
unbiased treatment of issues and topics.
Send a brief (1-3 page) outline to Carol De Vita,
Director of Publications, PRB, 1875 Connecticut Ave., NW,
Suite 520, Washington, DC 20009-5728; (202) 483-1100; fax
(202) 328-3937; e-mail: poptoday@prb.org.
World economic gap is widening, UN report says
Eighty-nine countries are worse off economically than
they were 10 years ago, leading to global polarization between
haves and have-nots, according to the UN's Human Development
Report 1996. This year's report examines the widening gaps
between rich and poor within countries and among continents
and shows that failing to put people at the center of
development puts brakes on the gains made in developing and
industrialized countries.
The basic feature of the report, the human development
index, ranks countries on the basis of life expectancy,
education, and basic purchasing power. Specific indexes focus
on detailed aspects of development, such as the relationship
between wealth, poverty, and social investment, employment,
and the role of women. Among the findings:
The very rich are getting richer. The assets of the
world's 358 billionaires exceed the combined annual incomes of
countries accounting for nearly half_45 percent_of the world's
people.
A strong foundation of human development is necessary
for countries to sustain high levels of economic growth.
Every day, 6,000 new HIV infections occur, one every 15
seconds, and 90 percent of those new infections occur in
developing countries. HIV/AIDS sets back human development by
years in some countries.
To order, write Oxford University Press, 2001 Evans
Road, Cary, NC 27513; (800) 451-7556; fax (919) 677-1303.
New books
State of the Union: America in the 1990s, vol. 1:
Economic Trends; vol. 2: Social Trends. Reynolds Farley, ed.
New York: Russell Sage Foundation, 1995. 375 pages each.
$39.95 per volume. ISBN: 0-87154-240-4, vol. 1; 0-87154-241-2,
vol. 2.
Demographic and Structural Change: The Effects of the
1980s on American Society. Dennis L. Peck and J. Selwyn
Hollingsworth, eds. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1996. 256
pages. $65.00. ISBN: 0-313-28744-9.