Mi Jeung Park - Assignment #3

1. Bolivia
Roman Catholic: 95%
Population growth rate: 1.694%
Birth rate: 24.71 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 6.85 deaths/1,000 population
Life expectancy at birth: 67.57 years
Total fertility rate: 3 children born/woman
Infant mortality rate: 42.16 deaths/1,000 live births
School life expectancy: 14 years
Population below poverty line: 30.3%

2. Ireland
Catholic: 87.4%
Population growth rate: 1.961%
Birth rate: 16.1 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 6.34 deaths/1,000 population
Life expectancy at birth: 80.19 years
Total fertility rate: 2.02 children born/woman
Infant mortality rate: 3.85 deaths/1,000 live births
School life expectancy: 18 years
Population below poverty line: 5.5%

3. Puerto Rico
Roman Catholic: 85%
Population growth rate: 0.254%
Birth rate: 11.35 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 7.95 deaths/1,000 population
Life expectancy at birth: 78.92 years
Total fertility rate: 1.62 children born/woman
Infant mortality rate: 8.07 deaths/1,000 live births
School life expectancy: NA
Population below poverty line: NA

4. Philippine
Catholic: 82.9%
Population growth rate: 1.903%
Birth rate: 25.34 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 5.02 deaths/1,000 population
Life expectancy at birth: 71.66 years
Total fertility rate: 3.19 children born/woman
Infant mortality rate: 19.34 deaths/1,000 live births
School life expectancy: 12 years
Population below poverty line: 32.9%

5. Mexico
Roman Catholics: 76.5%
Population growth rate: 1.102%
Birth rate: 19.13 births/ 1000 population
Death rate: 4.86 deaths/1,000 population
Life expectancy at birth: 76.47 years
Total fertility rate: 2.29 children born/woman
Infant Mortality rate: 17.29 deaths/ 1000 live births
School life expectancy: 14 years
Population below poverty line: 18.2%

6. Italy
Roman Catholic 90%
Population growth rate: 0.42%
Birth rate: 9.18 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 9.84 deaths/1,000 population
Life expectancy at birth: 81.77 years
Total fertility rate: 1.39 children born/woman
Infant mortality rate: 3.38 deaths/1,000 live births
School life expectancy: 16 years




1. Burma
Roman Catholic: 1%
Population growth rate: 1.084%
Birth rate: 19.31 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 8.61 deaths/1,000 population
Life expectancy at birth: 64.88 years
Total fertility rate: 2.26 children born/woman
Infant mortality rate: 49.23 deaths/1,000 live births
School life expectancy: 9 years
Population below poverty line: 32.7%

2. Egypt
Roman Catholic: 0.4%
Population growth rate: 1.96%
Birth rate: 24.63 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 4.82 deaths/1,000 population
Life expectancy at birth: 72.66 years
Total fertility rate: 2.97 children born/woman
Infant mortality rate: 25.2 deaths/1,000 live births
School life expectancy: 11 years
Population below poverty line: 20%

3. Greece
Other: 0.7% (Greek Orthodox 98%, Muslim 1.3%)
Population growth rate: 0.083%
Birth rate: 9.21 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 10.7 deaths/1,000 population
Life expectancy at birth: 79.92 years
Total fertility rate: 1.38 children born/woman
Infant mortality rate: 5 deaths/1,000 live births
School life expectancy: 17 years
Population below poverty line: 20%


Conclusion:
According to the statistical data above the nations randomly chosen, I have drawn an alternative to the idea that Catholicism leads to higher birth rates because of the low birth control intake. The birth rate does not depend on the percentage of practicing Catholics in a nation. The data suggests that birth rate can be more impacted by other variables, such as infant mortality and the percentage of the population below the poverty line in a nation.
Bolivia, Philippine, Mexico, Burma (out group), and Egypt (out group) all have similar high infant mortality rates (avg. 30%), and population below poverty level (avg. 25%), regardless of religious dominance of each countries while countries like Ireland, Italy, Puerto Rico, and Greece (out group) seems to share comparatively low infant mortality rates and population below poverty level. Lack of income seems to be a direct factor to the high infant mortality rate in those nations. The majority of people living in countries having the low population below poverty level receive not a significant level of knowledge about birth control. These people would probably not choose to have all of these babies but sexual reason causes the high birth rates throughout all economic levels and religions of people. Therefore, the birth rate seems to have continued to increase without a resource such as birth control. The infant mortality rate is so high in countries having low population below poverty line due to the lack of resources to be served for the infant and high costs of raising a child.
Overall, high birth rate is not necessarily predominant in Catholic dominated countries but is more likely correlated to a high percentage of persons below the poverty line as well as a very close correlation to infant mortality.