Russia’s peacetime demographic crisis: Dimensions, Causes, Implications

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Seattle: National Bureau of Asian Research. 2010. 321 p. E-ISBN-13: 9780981890494Modern Russia is in the throes of a prolonged depopulation which, according to the report’s author Nicholas Eberstadt, qualifies as nothing short of a humanitarian catastrophe. This population crisis is marked by disastrous mortality levels and an eroding human resource base and will present serious challenges for Russia’s future domestic and international policy priorities. This report represents the culmination of a three-year research project on Russia’s political economy, as examined through the unique prism of that country’s demographic profile.ContentsIntroduction: Russia’s Demographic Crisis: Not a Normal Country ProblemFewer but Not Better: The Demographics of Russia’s DepopulationDepopulation, with Modern Russian CharacteristicsRussia’s New Patterns of Fertility and Family Formation since the End of Communism: Shock or TransitionRussia’s Ominous Patterns of Mortality and Morbidity: Pioneering New and Modern Pathways to Poor Health and Premature DeathThe Terrible Mystery of Extreme Mortality in Modern Russia: Searching for Explanations and Answers to a Deadly PuzzleMigration: Russia’s Unfamiliar New Dilemmas of Personal ChoiceRussia’s Human Resources in Disarray: The Demographic Crisis beyond the Population CountPopulation Aging: Toward a Russia That Is Gray, Sick, and PoorEducation and Labor Productivity in Russia: High Levels of Schooling, Low Levels of Human CapitalSocial Capital in Russia: An Attitude Problem, on a National ScaleConclusion: A Demographic Reckoning for RussiaReferences