Population and Society
- Clare Holdsworth - Keele University, UK
- Nissa Finney - University of Manchester, UK
- Alan Marshall - University of Manchester, UK
- Paul Norman - University of Leeds, UK
- situates demographic aspects of population - births, deaths, migration, disease - within the context of broader social impacts, like work, health and wealth inequalities;
- uses illustrative examples from the developed and developing world, avoiding a distinct UK, European or "Western" bias;
- is illustrated throughout with pedagogic features, like chapter opening summaries, concluding list of key terms, suggestions for further readings, case study examples ("boxes"), and a glossary and full index.
This text will be widely used as the standard and most up-to-date text on population and society for courses in the social sciences.
This textbook provides an excellent introduction to the study of population and its significance for many of the key social, political, cultural and environmental issues facing the world today. It covers population growth, ageing, migration and mobility, parenting, health inequalities, and much more. While stressing the complexity of population dynamics, it does a fine job of unpacking this by taking each aspect in turn and setting out the relevant theories, definitions, measures and research findings. The text is written in a highly accessible style, speaking directly to the reader about what 'you' should be learning at each point and why. It is helpfully illustrated by examples drawn from the UK and around the world and complemented by boxes with more detailed information. The authors do not shy away from areas of continuing debate, providing both sides of an argument and encouraging readers to follow up the original sources. Unusually for an introductory text, this is a book which draws the reader on and, once started, is quite difficult to put down.
Tony Champion
Emeritus Professor of Population Geography, Vice President, British Society for Population Studies, 2011-2013
a very well designed textbook that istys well with other texts on demography, but with a more social science bend to it
Sage College Publishing
