The impacts of rapid demographic transition on family structure and income inequality in Brazil, 1981-2011.

This study analysed the impact of changing family structure on income distribution. Specifically, it analysed how changes in the proportions of different categories of family in the population contributed to increases in the income of the richest and poorest social strata in Brazil, and the consequent impacts on income inequality. Rural and urban families were compared in order to understand how these dynamics had different impacts on more developed (urban) and less developed (rural) areas. The results emphasize how changes observed in family structure are more pronounced among the richest families, contributing to an increase in (i) the income of the richest families and (ii) income inequality between the richest and poorest families, as well as between urban and rural areas.

[Some empirical effects of U.S. immigration policies on the flow of Mexican immigrants]. / Algunos impactos empiricos de las politicas migratorias de Estados Unidos en los flujos migratorios de mexicanos.

PIP: Changes in migration from Mexico to the US following anti-migrant measures in the US and devaluation of the peso in late 1994 were studied through interviews with Mexicans attempting to enter the US and with migrants returning to Mexico. The major control measures were Operation Gatekeeper, a federal program to reinforce border control around Tijuana-San Diego, and California's Proposition 187. Changes in the volume, sociodemographic profile, and family and social ties of migrants and in labor markets were studied between April 1993 and November 1995, with particular attention to California, the major destination and the focus of border control and anti-migration measures. Net Mexican immigration to the US was estimated at around 200,000, with 140,000 entering the US before the measures. For California, the net immigration was 49,000 before the measures and 69,000 after. The proportion going to California increased from 34% before the measures were enacted to 41.5% after. The short-term impact of the measures was reflected in a greater preponderance of males and a younger average age. Higher proportions of women returned to Mexico after the measures, the only sociodemographic effect observed in returning Mexicans. Neither migrant incomes nor remittances were affected by the US measures, at least in the short run. Migratory flows to the US are determined primarily by the structure of the Mexican and US labor markets, which were little affected by the measures.^ieng

[The demographic determinants of the aging of the population]. / Los determinantes demograficos del envejecimiento de la poblacion.

PIP: The extent to which changes in the major demographic variables have caused the aging of the population of Mexico is analyzed. These factors include the decline in mortality since 1950, the increase in international migration since 1950, and the decline in fertility since 1963. These effects are illustrated using a series of age pyramids with and without the impact of the factor under consideration.^ieng

[Water and the population-environment relation in Mexico: an evaluation using environmental statistics]. / El agua y la relacion poblacion-medio ambiente en Mexico: una evaluacion desde las estadisticas del medio ambiente.

PIP: This work uses the example of water to evaluate the degree to which environmental statistics can be used to study the relation between population and the environment in Mexico. The theoretical viewpoint adopted is that demographic dynamics do not have direct effects on the environment, such effects instead being mediated by technical, economic, and cultural factors. The work begins by describing and comparing three frameworks for collection of statistical data on the environment: the Framework for the Development of Environmental Statistics, the Framework for Indicators of Sustainable Development, and the Pressure-Response model. The importance of water in sustaining life, in agriculture, in spread of disease, and as an element articulating the population-environment relationship is then discussed. The availability, levels of disaggregation, and compatibility of environmental data from various sources are then examined. The author concludes that although Mexico has an enormous institutional capacity to produce statistics concerning the environment, data are independently collected by different agencies using different methodologies and are not compatible. The environmental statistics regarding water organized according to the prevailing frameworks make it impossible for example to determine how health or mortality patterns are modified by the quality or scarcity of water, or to what extent population is exerting pressure on the water supply. Additional data are needed if the relationship is to be fully understood.^ieng

[Population dynamics and social change in Latin America]. / Dinamica demografica y cambio social en America Latina.

PIP: "Given the current necessity to forecast the medium and long range scenarios in Latin America, sociological analyses of demographic trends have become very relevant. Welti argues that it is essential to reflect upon the relationship between population and development. This is even more critical now that all seems to revolve around the search for growth via structural adjustment. The author analyzes the present demographic setting in Latin America and the impact of demographic policies undertaken within structural adjustment." (EXCERPT)^ieng

[Migrating women: Mexican women in the United States]. / Mujeres migrantes: las mexicanas en Estados Unidos.

"This analysis considers some aspects of the international migration of Mexican women, seen under the light of two recent statistical sources: the [U.S.] 1990 census and the 1993-1994... International Migration Survey at the Mexican Northern Border. The joint analysis of migrations and migrant inventories reveals the hidden scope of feminine exile, as well as some of its peculiarities, and offers numerical answers to two questions: How does sex differentiate Mexican immigrants in the United States? How does the migration affect work, marriage, child-bearing, etc. of Mexican women? The results suggest the need to address migration no longer as an action of individuals, but of families (most immigrants are married), and to place the mother or the wife at the gravity center of the household migratory space." (SUMMARY IN ENG)

Economic integration and labor flows: stage migration in farm labor markets in Mexico and the United States.

"This article examines the probable effects of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) on migration from Mexico to the United States, disputing the view that expansion of jobs in Mexico could rapidly reduce undocumented migration. To the extent that NAFTA causes Mexican export agriculture to expand, migration to the United States will increase rather than decrease in the short run. Data collected in both California and the Mexican State of Baja California show that indigenous migrants from southern Mexico typically first undertake internal migration, which lowers the costs and risks of U.S. migration. Two features of employment in export agriculture were found to be specially significant in lowering the costs of U.S. migration: first, working in export agriculture exposes migrants to more diverse social networks and information about U.S. migration; second, agro-export employment in northern Mexico provides stable employment, albeit low-wage employment, for some members of the family close to the border (especially women and children) while allowing other members of the family to assume the risks of U.S. migration."

[Rural emigration in the inter-Andean valleys of Bolivia]. / L'emigration rurale dans les vallees inter-andines de Bolivie.

"Inscribed within an ancient national tradition, rural emigration in the interandean valleys of Bolivia is gaining importance. The country's contemporary crises and the immigration policies of the host countries maintain the flux trend towards Argentina while enabling new destination targets: the United States, and more recently Israel and Japan. In these Bolivian lands, the emigration derived income provides the driving force of family economies and triggers development of the local territory. At the same time, emigration induces a process of socio-economic differentiation in peasant communities which weakens the food-system and increases family nutritional risks in the populations marginal to this migration system. In addition to these mutations there is a strong sociocultural destructuring which affects community-cohesion in local societies." (SUMMARY IN ENG AND SPA)

[More than a century of international immigration into Argentina]. / Plus d'un siecle d'immigration internationale en Argentine.

"From the second half of the 19th century, Argentina was, along with the United States and Brazil, one of the main destinations that attracted European emigration to America.... The arrival of more that six million people between 1869 and 1930 resulted in radical changes in the socioeconomic structure of the country. After the crisis of the 1930s the impact of a development plan based on the export of agricultural products waned and the economic growth accompanied with political instability generated a slowing decline of migratory flows, despite a new wave between 1945 and 1952. The decrease of international migration comes along with an important change in the composition by places of origin.... The article analyses the successive migratory policies of Argentina's government as well as the migrants' spatial distribution and their incorporation in the labor market." (SUMMARY IN ENG AND SPA)

[Demographic discontinuities in Brazil and the state of Sao Paulo]. / Discontinuidades demograficas en Brasil y el estado de Sao Paulo.

"Given the importance of information on the population age structure when planning short, medium and long-term needs within the different social strata, this paper is a proposal to deepen...the study of changes in the population pyramids.... Based on the most recent methodologies a study of age discontinuities is carried out and a method of follow-up by cohorts is suggested, taking the 15-19 and 20-24 age groups as an example. The purpose is to show that, as a...cohort ascends in the age pyramid, new and different necessities arise and also different responses are demanded on the part of the social system." Data are for Brazil as a whole and for the state of Sao Paulo. (SUMMARY IN ENG)

[Economic adjustment and its demographic consequences in Latin America: an overview]. / Una vision sintetica del ajuste economico y sus consecuencias demograficas en America Latina.

PIP: This work reviews the available literature on short and medium term demographic responses to the economic adjustment processes occurring in Latin America during the 1980s. The first section describes the immediate causes and scope of the economic crisis of the 1980s in Latin America and the measures taken to correct imbalances. An external crisis rendered the current accounts deficit of the early 1980s no longer sustainable, interest rates and commercial conditions deteriorated, and a recessive adjustment of enormous magnitude occurred. The term "adjustment" covers a wide and varied array of economic changes, fiscal and social policy reforms, and changes in international commerce. The structural adjustment measures caused deterioration in investment and in equity. Real purchasing power declined more than per capita product in most Latin American countries between 1980 and 1990. Primary income distribution underwent regressive changes. In most cases the deterioration was not compensated by social spending. As a result of the fiscal adjustment and reduced public sector spending, per capita investment in health and education was less in 1990 than in 1980 in almost all countries. The demographic consequences of the adjustment processes are difficult to gauge precisely because the experiences of individual countries were heterogeneous and because no single definition of adjustment exists that would serve as a point of reference for comparison of situations without adjustment or with different types of adjustment. Nevertheless, some studies have attempted to specify terms of comparison. Some have compared conditions before the crisis or adjustments with conditions later, and others have analyzed short term fluctuations in demographic variables from their medium or long term trends. Such works suggest that nuptiality is the variable responding most intensely, systematically, and immediately to short term economic fluctuations. Fertility also appears to have responded, somewhat less systematically and with some lag due to the nature of reproductive processes. It is still too early to determine whether medium term fertility trends have been affected. Infant mortality has in general continued its decline although at a decelerating rate in many cases. Short term fertility fluctuations in most countries studied have shown a systematic relationship to economic conditions although the effects are of lesser magnitude than those of nuptiality or fertility. Deaths from some specific causes were more frequent than expected on the basis of past trends.^ieng

[An overview of economic adjustments and demographic responses in Latin America]. / Una vision sintetica del ajuste economico y sus consecuencias demograficas en America Latina.

PIP: The structural adjustment programs and other economic problems in Latin America in the 1980s are described and possible repercussions in demographic indicators are sought through a review of the literature. The region entered the 1980s with internal and external imbalances. An external crisis made the current accounts deficit unsustainable, and unfavorable changes occurred in commercial and interest rates. A recessive adjustment of enormous magnitude ensued. The adjustment closed the external gap and permitted a huge transfer of resources abroad, but much of the internal imbalance persisted. A decline in per capita income and a clear deterioration in social spending took place over the decade, and it is primarily through social costs that demographic effects would be expected. A wide variety of economic changes and reforms in social, fiscal, and international trade policy are lumped together in the term adjustment. It is difficult to measure demographic consequences because of the heterogeneous experiences of individual countries and because there is no single definition of "adjustments" that would allow comparisons to situations without adjustments. But comparisons of two points in time, one before and one after the adjustments, and analysis of short-term responses in the form of deviations from medium and long-term trends may shed light on the effects of adjustment programs. Studies indicate that nuptiality responded most systematically, intensely, and immediately to short-term economic fluctuations, although there is as yet no evidence of long-term trends in the number of persons marrying at some time in their lives. Fertility also reacted strongly but slightly less systematically and with one or more years of delay, as would be expected considering the nature of gestation. Infant mortality in general continued to decline, but the decline decelerated in many cases. Short-term fluctuations in infant mortality and deaths from selected causes were much more moderate than those of nuptiality and fertility. Mortality associated with some causes sensitive to economic fluctuations were more frequent during the 1980s than would have been expected according to past trends.^ieng

[The demographic impact of abortion. Estimated to be one fifth of total fertility]. / El impacto demografico del aborto. Se estima en una quinta parte de la fecundidad total.

PIP: There is consensus among demographers that, in countries where abortion is illegal, its magnitude cannot be estimated directly and can be estimated indirectly only with great difficulty. Because of the difficulty of quantifying the practice of abortion in Mexico, its occurrence is neglected in discussions of the country's demographic problems. But apart from issues of women's rights or health consequences, it is necessary that the general population, politicians, and opinion leaders assess abortion in its relationship to fertility and population growth. Study in numerous countries with varying socioeconomic characteristics suggests that no country can achieve a population growth rate near 1% without recourse to induced abortion as a complement to effective contraceptive usage. Experience shows that no country has achieved a total fertility rate under 2.2 without abortion. Observation of the demographic transition suggests that there are three phases in the relative role of induced abortion. In the first, fertility levels are high in the absence of contraception, and abortion is practiced but is not responsible for most intrauterine mortality. At a second stage, abortion becomes very important as the population begins to control fertility but lacks access to effective contraception. In the third stage, use of effective contraception permits fertility to be controlled, and abortion is used when contraception fails or is not used. National surveys indicate that in the 1960s, most Mexican women had 7 children and fewer than 10% used contraception. At present, most Mexican women in union use effective contraception, but a significant proportion still do not. Women not using contraception but not desiring more children and women whose methods fail constitute a pool of potential abortion seekers. Computer simulation models employing data from national fertility surveys have been used to estimate the different combinations of contraception and abortion that result in observed or projected total fertility rates. Assuming that in Mexico at present, 60% of couples limit their fertility after two children, that the total fertility rate is 3, and that the level of effectiveness of contraception is 95%, the implied total induced abortion rate is approximately 0.7 abortions per women at the end of her reproductive life. This level represents around 20% of current fertility. The abortion rate will decrease with increases in contraceptive efficacy, but the sociocultural conditions of the population, qualitative characteristics of family planning programs, and current state of contraceptive technology will limit increases in contraceptive efficacy in the short term in Mexico.^ieng

Trade and migration: the case of NAFTA.

"This article provides background information on NAFTA [the North American Free Trade Agreement], reviews data on its economic effects, and summarizes studies and projections of NAFTA's likely effects on Mexico-to-U.S. migration. Migration factors (demand-pull, supply-push, and networks) are examined to determine whether NAFTA's effect on economic development particularly in the border areas will accelerate or retard migration. The conclusion is that NAFTA is likely to produce a temporary migration hump, slightly raising already high migration levels in the 1990s, but reducing the volume of Mexico-to-U.S. migration that would otherwise occur over subsequent decades."

The migratory impact of minimum wage legislation: Puerto Rico, 1970-1987.

"This study examines the impact of minimum wage setting on labor migration. A multiple time series framework is applied to monthly data for Puerto Rico from 1970-1987. The results show that net emigration from Puerto Rico to the United States fell in response to significant changes in the manner in which minimum wage policy was conducted, particularly after 1974. The extent of commuter type labor migration between Puerto Rico and the United States is influenced by minimum wage policy, with potentially important consequences for human capital investment and long-term standards of living."

[Urban dynamics in Mexico: tradition and change]. / La dinamica urbana en Mexico: tradicion y cambio.

PIP: The author examines some socioeconomic implications of Mexico's urbanization process in recent years.^ieng

[The population of a Mexican parish in the eighteenth century: Santa Maria de la Presentation de Chilapa]. / La poblacion de una parroquia novohispana del siglo XVIII: Santa Maria de la Presentacion de Chilapa.

PIP: The author analyzes parish registers and census data for Santa Maria de la Presentacion de Chilapa, Mexico, to determine the characteristics of the parish population during the final quarter of the eighteenth century. He provides estimates of age and sex distribution and marital status, and considers the demographic impact of epidemics and famines brought about by colonization.^ieng

[Widows and neighbors, cornfields and magueys. The impact of population increase in the Toluca Valley: the case of Tenango del Valle during the eighteenth century]. / Viudas y vecinos, milpas y magueyes. El impacto del auge de la poblacion en el Valle de Toluca: el caso de Tenango del Valle en el siglo XVIII.

PIP: The author examines the effect of rapid population growth due to migration on the parish of Tenango del Valle, Mexico, during the eighteenth century. She gives special consideration to the impact on quality of life in indigenous villages, especially for widows and female heads of households who were impoverished as a result of discriminatory land transactions. Data are mainly from the parish register for 1770.^ieng

[Cholera in Mexico City during the nineteenth century]. / El colera en la Ciudad de Mexico en el siglo XIX.

PIP: The author draws on epidemiological and historical records for this description of the demographic impact of the fatal cholera epidemics of 1833 and 1848-1850 on the population of Mexico City, Mexico. Consideration is given to political, economic, and social factors that influenced the spread of the disease.^ieng

[The cholera epidemic of 1833 and mortality in Mexico City]. / La epidemia de colera de 1833 y la mortalidad en la Ciudad de Mexico.

PIP: The author examines the impact of the 1833 cholera epidemic in Mexico City, Mexico, on social, economic, and political aspects of life in that city. She finds that some five percent of the population died during the epidemic, and enumerates them by age and sex.^ieng