Abstract
BACKGROUND
Over the years, the community of demographers has grown in numbers and research interests, and has become increasingly interdisciplinary. The question is whether this process of growth and diversity has led to a fragmented community of demographers.
OBJECTIVE
We examine whether or not demographers are characterized by a high level of consensus in approach and outlook. We focus on two issues. The first relates to thelevel of consensus among demographers on what they perceive to be the most urgent population issues, and what their opinions are about population and fertility developments. The second issue focuses on the question of whether or not there is acommon approach or research style among demographers.
METHODS
We gain insight into the opinions and attitudes of 970 demographers on the basis of aninternet survey among IUSSP members, carried out in 2009.
RESULTS
There is a high level of consensus on what is considered the most important population issue: ‘population aging’. With respect to population policy, demographers are greatly divided. There is, however, a high level of consensus on what makes a demographersuccessful: being highly empirical. Demography seems to be a well integrated discipline, as applied researchers take note of what pure researchers publish and viceversa. Demography has scientific leaders who form a unifying power within thediscipline.
CONCLUSIONS
The core of the discipline of demography is to be found in an openness to insights from different disciplines, a commitment to data and empirical research, and well integrated spheres of applied and pure research.
Over the years, the community of demographers has grown in numbers and research interests, and has become increasingly interdisciplinary. The question is whether this process of growth and diversity has led to a fragmented community of demographers.
OBJECTIVE
We examine whether or not demographers are characterized by a high level of consensus in approach and outlook. We focus on two issues. The first relates to thelevel of consensus among demographers on what they perceive to be the most urgent population issues, and what their opinions are about population and fertility developments. The second issue focuses on the question of whether or not there is acommon approach or research style among demographers.
METHODS
We gain insight into the opinions and attitudes of 970 demographers on the basis of aninternet survey among IUSSP members, carried out in 2009.
RESULTS
There is a high level of consensus on what is considered the most important population issue: ‘population aging’. With respect to population policy, demographers are greatly divided. There is, however, a high level of consensus on what makes a demographersuccessful: being highly empirical. Demography seems to be a well integrated discipline, as applied researchers take note of what pure researchers publish and viceversa. Demography has scientific leaders who form a unifying power within thediscipline.
CONCLUSIONS
The core of the discipline of demography is to be found in an openness to insights from different disciplines, a commitment to data and empirical research, and well integrated spheres of applied and pure research.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 16 |
| Pages (from-to) | 363-408 |
| Journal | Demographic Research |
| Volume | 26 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 03 May 2012 |
Keywords
- demographers
- opinion
- science
- survey