The Population Problem in Pacific Asia

Despite the twenty-first century's often being referred to as the Asian Century-indicating hope for economic growth and the rebalancing of the global order-population aging and stagnation present an existential threat to the success of China and other territories of Pacific Asia (namely Japan,
Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and South Korea). This book argues that the population problem, rooted in low fertility, has thus far been largely considered in a linear way: low fertility leads to population stagnation and rapid aging, so fixing low fertility should correct the problem. However, a
multi-dimensional lens is essential to appreciating the scale and nature of the issue-and, indeed, to determining whether it is an issue at all. Stuart Gietel-Basten examines how the issue of low fertility has been constructed, how blame has been apportioned, and why policies designed to tackle it
have yielded few results. Drawing on an array of primary and secondary sources as well as examples from scholarly and popular literature, The Population Problem in Pacific Asia takes a comparative approach to fertility in the region and locates mainland China in its regional context. It serves as
a useful resource for government workers, stakeholders, and students and scholars in sociology, demography, geography, economics, and area studies.

Author: Stuart Gietel-Basten
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Published: 07/08/2019
Pages: 240
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.05lbs
Size: 9.30h x 6.30w x 1.00d
ISBN: 9780199361076

About the Author

Stuart Gietel-Basten, PhD, is Professor of Social Science and Public Policy at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. His research explores the causes and consequences of low fertility in East and South-East Asia. He has co-authored an introduction to demography entitled Why Demography
Matters and has co-edited a volume entitled Family Demography in Asia.