Demographic development: core governance approaches
Research Article
How to Cite
Neklyudova N.P. Demographic development: core governance approaches. Population. 2025. Vol. 28. No. 4. P. 29-41. DOI: https://doi.org/10.24412/1561-7785-2025-4-29-41 (in Russ.).
Abstract
The article analyzes historic and contemporary approaches to regulating demographic processes, classifying them by the degree of state intervention, and evaluating their effectiveness and ethical implications. It examines key concepts ranging from religious determinism and Malthusian ideas to modern methods, such as nudging, liberal eugenics, and transhumanism. Special attention is given to the contradictions between proponents of natural self-regulation and advocates of active state intervention. The study aims to systematize the diversity of demographic governance approaches, highlighting their strengths and weaknesses. Analysis of the state intervention in demographic development reveals an evolution from non-interventionist concepts to contemporary moderate regulation and strict control measures. The article demonstrates that coercive methods often violate human rights and provoke social conflicts, while soft tools may prove ineffective in addressing deep structural challenges. The findings suggest that modern demographic policy requires a balance between efficiency and ethics, accounting for both local specifics and global trends. Radical approaches, such as transhumanism and gene editing, are critically assessed, with emphasis placed on the importance of interdisciplinary dialogue in developing sustainable strategies. This article is intended for researchers in demography, sociology, political science, and bioethics, as well as policymakers involved in designing and implementing demographic programs. The review is based on analysis of a wide range of sources, including classical works, modern scientific studies, and government programs data.
Keywords:
demographic governance, demographic regulation, population policy, state regulation
References
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2. Yakunin V. I., et. al. Gosudarstvennaya politika vyvoda Rossii iz demograficheskogo krizisa [State Policy of Bringing Russia out of the Demographic Crisis]. 2nd ed. 2007. Moscow. Ekonomika [Economics], 2007. 888 р. (in Russ.)
3. Dorling D., Gietel-Basten S. Pochemu vazhna demographiya [Why demography matters (excerpt)]. Ekonomicheskaya sotsiologiya [Journal of Economic Sociology]. 2022. Vol. 23. No. 2. P. 36–64. DOI: 10.17323/1726-3247-2022-2-36-64 (in Russ.)
4. Vishnevsky A. G. Gerbert Spenser: nepriznannyj otets teorii demograficheskogo perekhoda [Herbert Spencer: the unrecognized father of the theory of demographic transition]. Demograficheskoje obozrenije [Demographic Review]. 2019. Vol. 6. No. 1. P. 6–31. DOI: 10.17323/demreview.v6i1.9110 (in Russ.)
5. Vorobyev V. S. K 200-letiyu so dnya rozhdeniya Gerberta Spensera — vydayushchegosya uchonogo-entsiklopedista 19 veka [On the 200th anniversary of the birth of Herbert Spencer — an outstanding scientist and encyclopedist of the XIX century]. Teoreticheskaya i eksperimentalnaya psikhologiya [Theoretical and Experimental Psychology]. 2020. Vol. 13. No. 2. P. 90–107. (in Russ.)
6. Pearl R., Reed L. J. On the rate of growth of the population of the United States since 1790 and its mathematical representation. [Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS, USA)]. 1920. Vol. 6. No. 6. P. 275–288.
7. Thaler R., Sunstein C. R. Arkhitektura vybora. Kak uluchshit’ nashi resheniya o zdorov’e, blagopoluchii i schast’e [Nudge: Architecture of Choice. Improving Decisions about Health, Wealth, and Happiness]. Moscow. Mann, Ivanov and Ferber. 2018. 240 p. (in Russ.)
8. Saimiddinov A. K. Sovetskaya yevgenika: idei po preobrazovaniyu «chelovecheskoy porody» [Soviet eugenics: ideas for transforming the «human race»]. Abyss (Voprosy filosofii, politologii i sotsialnoy antropologii) [Abyss (Issues of Philosophy, Political Science, and Social Anthropology)]. 2021. No. 1(15). P. 26–34. (in Russ.)
9. Jinek M., Chylinski, K., Fonfara I., et. al. A programmable dual-RNA-guided DNA endonuclease in adaptive bacteril immunity. Science. 2012. Vol. 337. Iss. 6096. P. 816–821. DOI: 10.1126/science.1225829
10. Buynyakova I. S. «Dizaynerskiye mladentsy»: sotsial’no-eticheskiye problemy biotekhnologicheskogo proektirovaniya budushchikh detey [«Designer babies»: socio-ethical issues of biotechnological engineering of future children]. Nauchnyje vedomosty belgorodskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Filosofiya. Sotsiologiya. Pravo [Scientific Bulletin of Belgorod State University. Philosophy. Sociology. Law]. 2017. Vol. 40. No. 10(259). P. 130–139. (in Russ.)
11. Khen Yu. V., Mikhailina S. A. Filosofskij analiz problemy usovershenstvovaniya cheloveka v svete rasshireniya vozmozhnostej biotekhnologij [Philosophical analysis of the problem of human improvement in the expansion of the possibilities of biotechnology]. Voprosy filosofii [Russian Studies in Philosophy]. 2022. No. 5. P. 36–46. DOI: 10.21146/0042-8744-2022-5-36-46 (in Russ.)
12. Kirilenko V. G. Idejno-istoricheskije osnovaniya kontseptsii «uluchsheniya cheloveka» [Sources of the concept of human enhancement in the history of ideas]. Chelovek [Human]. 2021. Vol. 32. No. 3. P. 135–151. DOI: 10.31857/S023620070015652-4 (in Russ.)
13. Rostova N. N. Filosofskije istoki postgumanizma: k probleme nechelovecheskogo [Philosophical origins of posthumanism: on the problem of the non-human]. Vestnik Tomskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Filosofiya. Sotsiologiya. Politologiya [Tomsk State University Journal of Philosophy, Sociology and Political Science]. 2023. No. 72. P. 151–162. DOI: 10.17223/1998863X/72/14 (in Russ.)
14. Vishnevsky A. G., Shcherbakova E. M. Demograficheskije tormoza ekonomiki [Demographic Brakes of the Economy]. Voprosy Ekonomiki [Issues of Economics]. 2018. No. 6. P. 48–70. DOI: 10.32609/0042-8736-2018-6-48-70 (in Russ.)
15. Arkhangelsky V. N., Elizarov V. V., Dzhanayeva N. G. Deti ili material’nyy dostatok: determinatsiya vybora [Children or material support: the determination of choice]. Uroven’ zhizni naseleniya regionov Rossii [Living Standards of the Population in the Regions of Russia]. 2021. Vol. 17. No. 1. P. 102–120. DOI: 10.19181/lsprr.2021.17.1.8 (in Russ.)
16. Elizarov V. V., Dzhanayeva N. G. Materinskiy (semeynyy) kapital kak programma podderzhki semey s det’mi: itogi realizatsii i perspektivy razvitiya (chast’ pervaya) [Maternity (family) capital as a support program for families with children: implementation results and development prospects (Part One)]. Uroven’ zhizni naseleniya regionov Rossii [Living Standards of the Population in the Regions of Russia]. 2020. Vol. 16. No.3. P. 38–48. DOI: 10.19181/lsprr.2020.16.3.3 (in Russ.)
17. Rybakovsky L. L. Demograficheskaya bezopasnost’ [The demographic security]. Bezopasnost’ Yevrazii [Security of Eurasia]. 2003. No. 3. P. 154–186. (in Russ.)
18. Sinelnikov A. B. Semeyno-demograficheskaya politika i puti povysheniya yeyo effektivnosti [Family-demographic policy and ways to improve its effectiveness]. Sotsiologiya [Sociology]. 2022. No. 2. P. 162–173. (in Russ.)
19. Tkachenko A. A. Aktual’nyye problemy razvitiya regionov Rossii: ekonomika i demografiya [Actual Problems of Development of Russian Regions: Economics and Demographics]. Ekonomika. Nalogi. Pravo [Economics, Taxes and Law]. 2024. No. 3(17). P. 115–124. DOI: 10.26794/1999-849X-2024-17-3-115-124 (in Russ.)
20. Klupt M. A. Teoriya demograficheskogo razvitiya: institutsional’naya perspektiva [Theory of demographic development: institutional perspective]. Obshchestvennyje nauki i sovremennost’ [Social Sciences and Contemporary World]. 2005. No. 2. P. 139–149. (in Russ.)
Article
Received: 05.02.2025
Accepted: 16.12.2025
Citation Formats
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APA
Neklyudova, N. P. (2025). Demographic development: core governance approaches. Population, 28(4), 29-41. https://doi.org/10.24412/1561-7785-2025-4-29-41
Section
DEMOGRAPHY: THEORY AND PRACTICE ISSUES
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