Demography has developed into a remarkably coherent field and now stands as a firmly established discipline with strong ties to policy-making agencies. However, in recent years there has been increasing recognition within demography of the limits of existing theories and methods, particularly its absence of a strong critical tradition and its isolation from recent theoretical developments in other social sciences. In this study, Nancy Riley and James McCarthy use the lens of postmodernism to structure a critical analysis of the field of demography. Paying particular attention to the fundamental epistemologies and methodologies that currently underlie the field, they explore how postmodern perspectives might serve to energize the field and how demography could be enhanced by the introduction of insights from other social sciences. Drawing on examples of new kinds of research in demography and related fields, this is an important new book that seeks to reinvigorate the field of demography.

A critical study of the field of demography from a postmodernist perspective.

About the Author
Nancy E. Riley is Associate Professor of Sociology at Bowdoin College, Maine. James McCarthy is Professor of Health Management and Policy, and Dean of the School of Health and Human Services, University of New Hampshire.


Book Information
ISBN 9780521533645
Author Nancy E. Riley
Format Paperback
Page Count 212
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 351g
Dimensions(mm) 228mm * 152mm * 16mm