july 2, 2015s. mathews1 human geography by james rubenstein chapter 9 key issue 1 why does...

April 19, 2023 S. Mathews 1

Human Geography

By James Rubenstein

Chapter 9Key Issue 1

Why Does Development Vary Among Countries?


The world is divided between relatively rich and relatively

poor countries.Geographers try to understand the reasons for this division and learn what can be done about it.


More Developed Country (MDC)

Also known as a relatively developed country or a

developed country, a country that has progressed relatively far along a

continuum of development.


Less Developed Country (LDC)

Also known as a developing country, a country that is at a relatively early stage in the

process of economic development.


Human Development Index (HDI)

Indicator of level of development for each

country, constructed by United Nations, combining income, literacy, education,

and life expectancy.


Human Development Index


Three Factors of Development

Economic (Gross domestic product per capita)

Social (Literacy rate and amount of education)

Demographic (Life expectancy)


Economic Indicators of Development


Economic Indicators of Development

Besides per capita GDP, 4 other economic factors

distinguish MDCs from LDCs;Economic structure,Worker productivity,

Access to raw materials, andAvailability of consumer

goods.


Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

The value of the total output of goods and

services produced in a country in a given time

period (normally a year).


Per Capita GDP


Gross National Product (GNP)

Similar to GDP, except that it includes income that

people earn abroad, such as a Canadian working in

the United States.


The world’s lowest per capita GDP are found in sub-Sahara Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia.

The gap in per capita GDP between MDCs and LDCs has been widening during the past quarter century.


Per capita GDP, or any other single indicator, cannot

measure perfectly the level of a country’s development.Per capita GDP measures

average (mean) wealth, not its distribution.


Types of JobsAll jobs fall into one of three

categories;Primary (including agriculture),

Secondary (including manufacturing), and

Tertiary (including services).


Primary SectorThe portion of the economy

concerned with the direct extraction of materials from Earth’s surface, generally

through agriculture, although sometimes by

mining, fishing, and forestry.


Secondary SectorThe portion of the economy

concerned with manufacturing useful

products through processing, transforming,

and assembling raw materials.


Tertiary SectorThe portion of the economy

concerned with transportation,

communications, and utilities, sometimes extended to the provision of all goods and

services to people in exchange for payment.


Quaternary SectorThe portion of the economy

concerned with business services, such as trade,

insurance, banking, advertising, and

wholesaling.


Quinary SectorThe portion of the economy

concerned with health, education, research,

government, retailing, tourism, and recreation.

Current practice is to include quaternary and quinary sectors

in the tertiary sector


The % of people working in agriculture exceeds 75% in

many LDCs, compared to less than 5% in many MDCs.

A high % of agricultural workers in a country

indicates that most of its people are spending their

days producing food for their own survival.


Within MDCs, primary and secondary sector jobs have

decreased.Decline in manufacturing jobs

reflects greater efficiency inside the factories and

increased global competition.


Relationship

between type of

jobs and developm

ent


ProductivityThe value of a particular product compared to the

amount of labor needed to make it.

Production in LDCs must rely more on human and

animal power.


Value AddedThe gross value of the

product minus the costs of raw materials and energy.


Raw MaterialsDevelopment requires access to raw materials and energy.In Europe, countries took advantage of domestic coal

and iron ore to promote industrial development

throughout the 19th century.


European ColoniesCreated to ensure adequate

supply of raw materials.As colonies of Africa and Asia

gained independence, they continued to supply the raw materials used in European

industry.


As prices for raw materials decline due to global supply,

LDCs have had difficulty achieving development.In a global economy,

availability of raw materials and energy resources measures a country’s

development potential rather than its actual development.


Consumer Goods

*Important*The wealth used to buy nonessentials promotes

expansion of manufacturing, which in turn generates additional wealth in the

society.


Quantity and type of goods and services is a good measure of the level of

development.Particularly good indicators

are motor vehicles, telephones, and televisions.

The number of individuals per telephone and motor vehicles

exceeds 100 in most LDCs.


Telephone Lines per 1000 Persons


In LDCs, the minority who own consumer goods, such as

telephones, motor vehicles, and televisions, are

government officials, landowners, and other elites.

As a result of greater exposure to cultural

diversity, people in MDCs display different social

characteristics from people in LDCs.


Social Indicators of Development


Social Indicators of Development

MDCs use part of their greater wealth to provide schools,

hospitals, and welfare services. Infants survive, and adults live longer. Well educated, healthy, and secure populations can be more economically productive.


Education and Literacy

The assumption; no matter how poor the school, the longer the pupils attend, the more likely

they are to learn.--The reality; quality of education is measured by student/teacher

ratio and literacy rate.


Student/Teacher Ratio


The average pupil attends school for about 10 years in MDCs, compared to only a couple of years in LDCs.

LDCs must learn technical information from books that

usually are not in their native language, but in

English, German, Russian, or French.


Literacy RateThe percentage of a

country’s people who can read and write.

It exceeds 95% in MDCs, compared to less than 1/3rd

in many LDCs.


Health and WelfareWhen people get sick, MDCs possess the resources to care

for them.In many wealthier countries, health care is a public service

for little or no cost.The United States is an

exception.


Persons per Physician


People in MDCs receive more calories and proteins daily

than they need.In LDCs of Africa and Asia,

most people receive less than the daily minimum

allowance of calories and proteins recommended by

the United Nations.


Daily Available Calories per Capita


Demographic Indicators of Development


Life ExpectancyBabies born today can expect to live into their early forties in LDCs and mid-seventies in

MDCs.Males live 9 years longer in

MDCs than in LDCs.Females live 13 years longer.


Infant Mortality Rate

In LDCs, 90% of infants survive, while 99% of infants

survive in MDCs.Babies die of malnutrition and

dehydration from diarrhea.Some die from poor medical practices, such as umbilical cords cut with dirty knives.


Crude Birth RateAnnual CBR exceeds 40 per 1000 in LDCs, while it is less than 15 per 1000 in MDCs.CBR does not indicate a

society’s level of development.

The mortality rate for women in childbirth is significantly

higher in LDCs.

july 2, 2015s. mathews1 human geography by james rubenstein chapter 9 key issue 1 why does...

Documents

gdp slide

countrys development

continuum of development

developing country

developed country ldc

developed country mdc

economic factors

ldcs economic structure