The demographic effect of socioeconomic development in guam

Abstract

SummaryGuam has experienced a dramatic socioeconomic development since the end of World War II, accompanied by one of the most rapid fertility declines on record. Although Guam has a very low mortality, comparable to that of the United States, its fertility is higher than in most countries with the same income level. It is suggested that the current high fertility results from the pro-natalist pressures associated with Roman Catholicism. The emigration of residents has been completely offset by immigration from the Orient and, to a lesser extent, the United States. Rural-to-urban migration, mainly from the south to the north, did not start until the late 1950s. Since the end of World War II, the military and alien population has accounted for approximately 40% of the total population and has had substantial demographic, political, and socioeconomic effects.