The mechanical movement of the population is what a concept is and how it is characterized?

Mechanical movement of the population is a concept more commonly known as migration. It is a process in which the place of residence of social groups or individuals changes, manifested in their relocation to another country, geographical area or region.

Mechanical movement of the population in some countries

The level of migration and its orientation differ significantly in different states. For example, the mechanical movement of the population of North America is characterized by migration growth. In other words, the number of arriving here for long-term or permanent residence is greater than the number of people leaving. In other countries, for example, in Azerbaijan, the opposite ratio is observed. The mechanical movement of the population in Russia is characterized by the fact that natural loss is 75% replenished by migration. Russia in terms of its volume is on the third place in the world, second only to the US and Germany. About ¾ of migrants are Russian-speaking population from CIS countries.

Migration in a broad and narrow sense

In a broad sense, it is seen as any movement of people. In the narrow, it refers to the intersection of the boundaries of certain territories with which there is a change of residence or for a long time, or forever.

External and internal migration

Migration can be classified according to a number of characteristics. For example, depending on the nature of the crossing of borders by the population, its following varieties are distinguished.

• Internal migration is the movement of people within a single state between economic-geographical or administrative areas, populated areas (moving from village to village, from city to city, from village to town, from city to village).
• External migration refers to the crossing of the country's borders. It includes immigration and emigration.

Emigration and immigration

Let's talk about what distinguishes these two similar in sounding concepts. The word "emigration" comes from the Latin term meaning "resettled", "evicted". Such a mechanical movement of the population is called moving (forced or voluntary, organized or self-flowing) to another state for temporary residence for a long period, or for a permanent one. In most cases, it is associated with a change in citizenship.

The word "immigration" also has a Latin origin and is translated as "settling in". Such a mechanical movement of the population is his entry into the country for a temporary (long-term) or permanent residence, mainly with a change in citizenship.

Migration in demography is considered an integral part of another process, called "population reproduction." From this position it is often defined precisely as a mechanical movement of the population.

Quantitative indicators of mechanical movement of the population

Studying migration, like any other phenomena related to demography, it is important to know what their quantitative characteristics are. Mechanical movement of the population is a phenomenon which, with respect to people living in any territory (city, district, country, etc.) is divided into arrivals from outside and the retirement of persons beyond its borders.

The balance of migration (net migration, or net migration) is the difference between the number of arrivals and departures for a particular period of time. There is one more important indicator. This is the amount of migration. It is defined as the sum of arrivals and disposals. The volume of migration is also called gross migration, or gross migration.

It is possible to express the number of arrivals and departures in absolute numbers, allowing us to visualize what the overall mechanical movement of the population is. This representation, however, does not reveal the intensity of the process of interest to us. After all, there is a relationship between the total population and the number of departures and arrivals, which must also be taken into account. Therefore, the mechanical movement of the population is characterized by a number of relative indicators. Let's talk about the most important of them.

Relative indicators

The intensity of migration is estimated as relative indicators, which are called intensity factors. Let's list the main ones.

• The arrival rate (denoted as Kp) is the ratio of the number of arrivals to the population of a given territory.
• The coefficient of retirement (Kv) is the ratio of the number of people who left the population.
• Relative balance of migration (Ks) - the ratio of the difference in the number of arrivals and departures in the population.
• The total mobility factor (Kp) is the ratio of the amount of disposals and arrivals, that is, of all migratory movements, to the number of inhabitants of a given territory.

These are the main indicators of the mechanical movement of the population.

Components of migration

Often, when analyzing migration, it is necessary to dismember it into separate components. Briefly, we characterize the most important of them. Migratory flows are usually allocated. These are groups of migrants who share common areas of arrival or disposal. One can also name one more component, which is often distinguished by researchers. These are migratory cohorts, which are a set of individuals who are united by a common migration period.

The composition of persons who are included in the mechanical movement of the population is also something that is of great importance. These people are characterized by social belonging, age and sex, nationality, etc. After all, migration mobility among groups of the population is heterogeneous. The composition of migrants leads to significant changes in the structure of the population in the areas of arrival and places of disposal.

Relationship between demographic indicators and migration

Mechanical movement of the population is associated with specific events in human life. For example, with the completion or beginning of work, the end of an educational institution, service in the army, etc. Conclusion and termination of marriage, the birth of children and other events related to the demographic cycle is an important part of every person's life. Therefore, the parameters related to demography (marital status, age of children and their number, etc.), have a significant impact on the processes associated with migration. They are one of the important criteria by which groups of the population are distinguished in the study of its mechanical movement.

As already mentioned above, different groups are characterized by different mobility. Migration, which is studied from the point of view of its intensity indices within certain categories of the population, was called differential. Her research is important for understanding the differences that marked the mechanical movement of the population of different regions, age, ethnic, socio-professional and other groups. When studying this type of migration, first of all, attention is paid to differences existing in age groups. After all, these associations are significantly different in terms of the level of mechanical movement of the population.

Relationship of migration with gender

The indicators of migration mobility also differ depending on sex. Among migrants in many states, the advantage of men is revealed. However, this rule is not universal. In some countries, in some periods there was an increased proportion of women in migration flows. For example, in Europe in the past, it was the representatives of the fair sex who predominated among those who left. Based on this, E. Ravenstine, an English researcher of the 19th century, created empirical laws of migration. In one of them it was said that women as a whole are more likely to migrate than men.

Number of children and marital status

The mobility of the population also depends on the number of children in the family and on the marital status. However, these dependencies are not as one-sided as in the case of a connection between the intensity of the process of interest and age. Not only the number of children can influence migration mobility. In turn, their number can be determined by the degree of mobility. For example, if a family often moves, it may delay the issue of the birth of children. Consequently, their number decreases.

Intensity of reproduction

The migration mobility of the population has an effect on the intensity of the processes of reproduction. And this concerns the reproduction of both closed and open populations. In the latter case, migration changes its composition and strength directly. Shifts in the sex and age structure are particularly important. If men prevail among migrants, and also if there is a high proportion of representatives of younger groups of working-age people (16-30 years old), feminization of the inhabitants of this territory is observed. In addition, this leads to its aging in the areas of retirement and to the high number of young men in places of entry.

Mechanical and natural movement of the population

In conclusion, I would like to note the difference between two important concepts. The mechanical and natural movement of the population is not the same thing. The natural movement is reproduction. About its relationship with migration, we briefly described in the article. It is characterized by the level of natural increase, mortality, fertility, life expectancy of the population. Indicators of natural increase, mortality and fertility are quantitatively accepted in terms of per mille per thousand inhabitants.