Population pressure and agricultural change in the land‐intensive economy

Abstract

Boserup's view that population pressure is an important determinant of technical change in agriculture is examined in the context of Sierra Leone. Population density is misleading when used as an indicator of population pressure, at least in conditions where cultivation is mainly of the ‘cut and burn’ type. The ratio of population to labour is suggested as an alternative on the basis of a theoretical definition of the term ‘pressure’, and on the whole it provides a good explanation of the variation in resource use.