Events

This workshop is jointly organized by the Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore, and the Asian Population Association.

Undoubtedly, the COVID-19 pandemic has had and will continue to have a profound influence on human society for many years to come. By now, it has resulted in an unmistakable impact in core demographic processes – mortality, fertility, migration, family and marriage, and health – all around the world. Its impact on the core components of demographic change undergirds many other changes that have transformed society, be it in the arena of healthcare, geopolitics, macro-economies, or the environment. It then follows that to better understand the current and future consequences of the COVID-19 crisis, we first need to explore the demographic outcomes and implications of the pandemic within the field of population studies.

In particular, as Dommaraju (2020) observes, demographic analysis is useful in understanding the social aspects of population dynamics. This includes significant themes such as inequality, inequity, as well as differentials in demographic outcomes. Employing a social demographic lens towards analysing the pandemic can and has resulted in unique insights relating its effect on population dynamics. Preliminary studies have already produced interesting findings – Soneji et. al (2021) and Venella et. al (2021) evaluate population-level mortality burden and excess mortality in light of the pandemic; Giorgi & Boertien (2021) and Bernardi et. al (2021) investigate the impact of pandemic confinement measures on socio-demographic inequality; and Furfaro et. al (2021) and Luppi et al. (2021) dive into the mobility strategies of individuals in light of containment measures. Desai (2021) highlights the challenges of demographic data collection during the pandemic, and Dommaraju (2020) echoes this, noting that the pandemic has severely limited the collection of quantitative data, and calls for the increased need to focus attention on digital data and other innovative data collection methods and analyses.

In view of the rising momentum this topic is gaining, this workshop will provide a platform for scholars to present their findings on the demographic outcomes and implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on population studies. Moreover, there has thus far been limited discussions surrounding this topic situated in the Asian context.

In response, this workshop brings together scholars from various fields exploring one or more of the following questions:

• How has the COVID-19 pandemic affected one or more of the core components of demographic change (mortality, fertility, migration, family and marriage, health) in Asia?
• What would be the short- and longterm implications of these impacts?
• In what ways do these observed and predicted population changes in Asia uncover or exacerbate preexisting social inequalities, and/or affect family social structures and ageing?
• How do we devise a more rigorous and robust means of demographic data collection and analysis, given the present limitations with employing large-scale surveys and censuses in a pandemic?
• What, if any, are the roles of demographers during times of crises and pandemics?

References

– Bernardi, F., Cozzani, M., & Zanasi, F. (2021). Social inequality and the risk of living in a nursing home: Implications for the COVID-19 pandemic. Genus, 77(1), 9. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41118-021-00119-5.
– Desai, S. (2021). Demographic Contributions to Policymaking during the Pandemic. Essays: Covid-19 and the Global Demographic Research Agenda. https://doi.org/10.31899/pdr1.1004.
– Dommaraju, P. (2020). Social demography and pandemics. Asian Population Studies, 16(3), 241–242. https://doi.org/10.1080/17441730.2020.1811512.
– Furfaro, E., Rivellini, G., Pelle, E., & Zaccarin, S. (2021). Constructing personal networks in light of COVID-19 containment measures. Genus, 77(1), 17. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41118-021-00128-4.
– Giorgi, J., & Boertien, D. (2021). The potential impact of co-residence structures on socio-demographic inequalities in COVID-19 mortality. Genus, 77(1), 20. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41118-021-00124-8.
– Luppi, F., Rosina, A., & Sironi, E. (2021). On the changes of the intention to leave the parental home during the COVID-19 pandemic: A comparison among five European countries. Genus, 77(1), 10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41118-021-00117-7.
– Soneji, S., Beltrán-Sánchez, H., Yang, J. W., & Mann, C. (2021). Population-level mortality burden from novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in Europe and North America. Genus, 77(1), 7. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41118- 021-00115-9.
– Vanella, P., Basellini, U., & Lange, B. (2021). Assessing excess mortality in times of pandemics based on principal component analysis of weekly mortality data—The case of COVID-19. Genus, 77(1), 16. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41118-021-00123-9.

WORKSHOP CONVENORS

Prof Brenda S.A. YEOH FBA
Asia Research Institute, and Department of Geography, National University of Singapore

Assoc Prof Premchand DOMMARAJU
Division of Sociology, Nanyang Technological University

Ms Stephanie Christine HENG
Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore

REGISTRATION

Registration is closed, and instructions on how to participate in this workshop has been sent out to registered attendees. Please write to aritm@nus.edu.sg if you would like to attend the event.