Socioeconomic Determinants of the Demographic Situation in Russia

Abstract

The most influential paradigm in Russian demography today is the theory of "demographic transition," according to which Russia is making the transition from the traditional type of population reproduction (high birth rate, high mortality rate, low average life span) to the modern type of reproduction (low birth rate, low mortality rate or one that is rising slowly as the population ages, long life span). A radical variant of the "demographic transition" paradigm is the idea that all present-day difficulties affecting demographic development have been conditioned by collectivization, the purges, and war and have nothing at all to do with the current socioeconomic situation.