This paper discusses the possible problems that future families might face due the changes that will occur in the society, one major change that will occur is the increase in population size which will be the root cause of all the problems families will face, this paper focuses on some of the problems that families may face in the future and also the possible solution to these problems. :
Every other nation records positive population growth over the years, this is a major problem that was depicted by Robert Malthus, he stated that population grows in a geometric progression manner while resources or food grows in an arithmetic manner, in his discussion he stated that population growth will exceed the available resource which will lead to an increase in food shortages and other calamities.
For this reason therefore families will experience difficulties due to few resources being shared by majority, this will lead to lack of basic needs such as clothing, food and shelter, also due to the increased population the labor force will exceed the absorption capacity of available jobs and as a result increased unemployment and therefore lack of sustainable incomes to fulfill basic needs. Increased ailments:
Pollution has not been reduced despite various alarms by researchers and also by nature, due to increased pollution there will be a rise in the environmental related illnesses which will increase the amount of funds spent to cater for the health of individuals, there will be also a reduction in the workforce leading to a reduction in productivity. Increase pollution will be as a result of the increased production of good to cater for the growing population and this will result to environmental degradation as a result of improper disposal of waste products and also extensive use of crude oil products.
Life expectancy: Life expectancy in most polluted areas has also reduced, as a result this age will continue to reduce until the problem is resolved, as a result of this reduction there will increased premature deaths in families whereby parents will not live enough to look after their children and even to support them to get proper education, as a result there will be an increase in irresponsibility among the young once leading to increased poverty. Poverty:
Many families will be poor due to the increased population and also increased unemployment, there will also be a degradation of the environment and human food will be scarce and this is why many families will be poor because they will not meet their basic needs. Solutions: Environmental protection: Current authorities should increase efforts to protect the environment, there should also be an increase in efforts to find substitute resources that are environmental friendly such as solar power and wind power other than use of crude oil products.
Research should also be aimed at finding possible ways to improve the environment such as a forestation and reforestation, other methods should be improvised to improve on the current state of the environment. Family planning: There is a need to reduce the rate of population growth, this means that the population should be educated on the importance of family planning and also the number of children a family should sustain in order to maintain population growth down, this method is not a solution but a way to extend the occurrence of these problems. Increased production:
Nations should take into consideration the rate of production and the potentials of the resources available, every nation should have in mind ways in which they should increase employment and also effective use of resources, this way future generations will not have problems finding jobs and raising families. This can only be done through increased investments and business opportunities. Education and research: There is also a need to increase spending on education which will increase the productivity of the future generations, this will lead to increased productivity in the futre which will lead to improved living standards in the future.
Education will also help the current generation to make decision that will not harm future generations. Critics of the Malthusian theory of population growth: The Malthusian theory of population growth has faced critics from other scholars, some scholars states that Malthus did not take into consideration the possible changes that may occur such as technology that increases production to cater for the growing population, they also state that Malthusian theory does not have enough evidence that the increase in population will exceed the available resources because new resources are discovered time after time.
Conclusion: It is clear that in the future the major problems will include over population, increased pollution, poverty and reduced life expectancy, for this reason therefore there is need to take actions now to avoid future problems that generations to come may face. Production today does not the future costs of using the resources today and production is only based on the current market conditions of demand and supply.
There is therefore a need for the authorities to take actions today regarding solving the various problems we expect in the future.
References:
Scott Forbes (2005)Natural History of Families By Scott Forbes, Princeton University Publishers, New York Marvin Sussman (1991)Families: Intergenerational and Generational Connections, Haworth Press, New York