Anthropological Demography: Theories, Methods, and Applications

3 units

Anthropological Demography is an interdisciplinary endeavor that developed in response to the need to incorporate cultural context into the analysis of population data. The course introduces some fundamental demographic concepts (e.g., vital rates, natural fertility, and demographic transition theory) and provides students with the foundations for demographic literacy through an exploration of basic quantitative methods and means of presentation. The course then deals with an anthropological critique of demographic assumptions, then shifts to a demographic critique on the applicability of anthropological knowledge. The final and most substantial part of the course will be devoted to an intensive reading of seminal works in the field.