10016 - Social Demography

Learning outcomes

The course aims to deepen the study of demographic phenomena with particular reference to their social determinants. The goal is to enable the student to analyze the complex system of interactions between determinants and demographic phenomena to interpret the historical and current evolution of populations and set the forecast hypotheses for their future evolution. At the end of the course, the student is able to analyze the diachronic evolution of demographic phenomena and make synthetic and analytical forecasts of the population.

Course contents

Introduction to Social Demography
The social determinants of demographic processes: age, gender, and migration status.

Data sources:
National and international data sources.

Fertility and mortality in historical perspective: an overview

• The demographic transition

• Diminishing returns and population growth

• Malthusian mechanisms

• Population pressure, development, and the demographic transition

Health and epidemiological transitions

• Changes in causes of death

• Pandemics

• Healthy life years and gains in life expectancy

• Differential mortality by cause of death and educational attainment

Population ageing

• Frailty, functional decline, and loss of autonomy

• The Silver Economy

The Second Demographic Transition

• Family dissolution

• Emerging household and family forms

Generations

• Definitions of generations

• Changes in the transition to adulthood

Welfare regimes

• The relationship between welfare systems and demographic processes

Migration

• The evolution of migration in Italy and its relationship with demographic changes in the non-migrant population

• Characteristics of the migrant population

• Regularisation programmes

• Fertility among foreign-born populations

• Sea arrivals, refugees, and asylum seekers

Gender as a fundamental dimension of demographic analysis

Intersectionality in demographic research

• The role of women’s empowerment

Demography and gender-based violence

• Gender-based violence and femicide

• Child and early marriage

• Sex-selective abortion

• Female genital mutilation

Readings/Bibliography

Teaching materials provided by the instructor during the course will be available on the Virtuale platform.

For general reference, particularly for students who do not attend classes:

• M. Livi Bacci, Storia minima della popolazione del mondo, Il Mulino, Bologna.
• G. Caselli, V. Egidi, and C. Strozza, L'Italia longeva. Dinamiche e diseguaglianze a cavallo di due secoli, Il Mulino, Bologna.
• D. Vignoli and A. Paterno (2025), Rapporto sulla popolazione. Verso una demografia positiva.

Teaching methods

The course content will be covered in full during the lectures. Starting in November, lectures will be complemented by data analysis sessions held in a computer laboratory, aimed at applying the concepts introduced in class to real-world data.

The software packages used will be Excel and Stata.

Participation in the laboratory sessions is optional for students who take the examination as non-attending students.

Assessment methods

The course will be taught during the first semester. No mid-term examinations are scheduled. The examination is designed to assess students’ knowledge of the concepts presented during the lectures.

Students who attend classes will have the opportunity, for the first examination session only, to complete the examination through an individual assignment consisting of two separate data analyses, accompanied by a brief oral presentation of the preliminary results. The preliminary findings will be presented in class before the end of the course.

For the preparation of this assignment, the use of AI is permitted only to support the production of STATA code.

For non-attending students, as well as for attending students who choose not to complete the assignment, the course content will be assessed through a 90-minute written examination consisting of four open-ended questions.

Grades are awarded on a scale of 30.

Grading criteria:

• 18–23: Sufficient knowledge and analytical skills, although limited to a restricted number of topics covered during the course

• 24–27: Technically adequate knowledge, with some limitations regarding the topics covered; good analytical skills, although not particularly developed

• 28–30: Excellent knowledge of a broad range of topics covered during the course; good analytical and critical-thinking skills

• 30 with honours: Excellent, in-depth, and comprehensive knowledge of the topics covered during the course; outstanding critical analysis and ability to establish connections between different topics

Registration for examinations must be completed through the AlmaEsami platform.

Examination sessions are scheduled during the following months of the academic year: January, with two examination dates, June, and September.

Students with learning disorders and\or temporary or permanent disabilities: please, contact the office responsible (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students ) as soon as possible so that they can propose acceptable adjustments. The request for adaptation must be submitted in advance (15 days before the exam date) to the lecturer, who will assess the appropriateness of the adjustments, taking into account the teaching objectives.

 

Teaching tools

The course is delivered through slides presented during classes and made available to students.

The Virtuale platform is the main tool supporting teaching activities and should be regularly consulted for course updates and important communications.

Videos and computer laboratory sessions will also be used.

Students who require compensatory tools or specific exemptions due to disabilities or specific learning disabilities must first contact the relevant University office: https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students .

Office hours

See the website of Livia Elisa Ortensi