Cambridge O Level Economics: Population (2281) – Practice Questions

These are original questions written for Marlbridge, for revision and practice on this content. They are not reproduced past-paper questions, and they do not replicate the exam’s exact structure, question count or mark tariffs – examination boards hold copyright in their own papers. Use these alongside the official past papers from your board or school.

These questions cover section 5.3, Population, of the Cambridge O Level Economics (2281) syllabus for examination in 2026, version 2. There are no tiers. Every country and figure is invented and illustrative. Revise first with the study guide and the revision notes. Other links: the Cambridge O Level Economics hub, the printable checklist and the free diagnostics. Write your own answer before you read the worked answer.

Questions

1. State two factors that directly change the size of a country’s population. [2]

2. In a year, Country R (illustrative) had an opening population of 25,000,000, with 400,000 births, 275,000 deaths, 30,000 immigrants and 105,000 emigrants.

(a) Find the birth rate and the death rate, each per 1,000 people. [2] (b) Calculate net migration. [1] (c) Calculate the population growth rate as a percentage and the closing population. [3]

3. Explain two reasons why the birth rate in a country may fall as the country develops. [4]

4. Explain why a country with excellent healthcare may have a higher death rate than a poorer country. [3]

5. Explain one push factor and one pull factor that may lead workers to move from one country to another. [4]

6. The table shows Country T (illustrative).

Population (millions)	4	8	12	16	20
Total output (billions)	60	168	276	352	380

(a) Work out output per head for every population size. [2] (b) Identify the optimum population. [1] (c) Using the extra output from the last 4 million people, explain why 20 million is over-populated. [2] (d) Explain how new technology could change the optimum. [2]

7. Country S (illustrative) has this age and gender structure, in % of its total population.

Age group	Males	Females
0-14	11	10
15-39	19	18
40-64	15	16
65+	4	7

(a) Dependants per 100 people of working age is a reading aid, not a syllabus term. Calculate the number of dependants (aged 0-14 and 65 and over) per 100 people aged 15-64. [3] (b) Describe one feature of the gender pattern and suggest a reason for it. [2] (c) Explain two effects of this age structure on the government. [4]

8. Real GDP in Country Y (illustrative) rises by 4.2% in a year and its population by 2.8%.

(a) Find by how many per cent real output per person changes. [3] (b) Explain one reason why this figure does not prove that everyone is better off. [2]

9. In Country Z (illustrative) many men aged 20 to 40 have moved abroad for work, so women outnumber men at those ages. Explain two effects on the country. [4]

10. Evaluate whether a falling population is a problem for a country. [8]

11. Country N (illustrative) has a wide-based pyramid and a population growing at 2.5% a year. Discuss the economic effects of this structure and conclude whether the effects are mainly beneficial or harmful. [8]

Answers

1. Any two of births (the birth rate), deaths (the death rate) or net migration (immigration or emigration), [1] + [1]. [2] Examiner insight: Naming “factors” such as education or healthcare is an indirect cause, so a direct answer needs the births, deaths or migration route that changes the number of people.

2. (a) Birth rate = 400,000 ÷ 25,000,000 × 1,000 = 16 per 1,000 [1]. Death rate = 275,000 ÷ 25,000,000 × 1,000 = 11 per 1,000 [1]. (b) Net migration = 30,000 − 105,000 = −75,000 (net emigration) [1]. (c) Natural change = 400,000 − 275,000 = 125,000, total change = 125,000 − 75,000 = 50,000 [1]. Growth = 50,000 ÷ 25,000,000 × 100 = 0.2% [1]. Closing population = 25,000,000 + 50,000 = 25,050,000 [1]. Examiner insight: Show each subtraction and keep the minus sign on net migration. Visible working lets a marker see which step went wrong, whereas a bare wrong answer shows nothing.

3. First reason, such as more education for girls and women [1], which raises the opportunity cost of childcare so women have fewer children and have them later [1]. Second reason, such as lower infant mortality [1], which means families no longer need many children to be sure some survive [1]. Accept contraception, urbanisation, state pensions. [4] Examiner insight: Each reason is worth more when it carries a link (“so”, “which means”) to the birth rate. A list of factors with no reasoning usually gains little.

4. Healthcare is only one influence on the death rate; age structure matters too [1]. A rich country may have a large share of elderly people [1], and more elderly people die each year, so deaths per 1,000 can be higher than in a poorer country with a young population [1]. [3] Examiner insight: The question asks for “why”, so state the age-structure link explicitly. Saying only “old people die” with no comparison to the poorer country is incomplete.

5. Push factor, such as high unemployment or low wages at home [1], which means workers expect to do better by leaving [1]. Pull factor, such as higher wages or good jobs in the destination [1], which attracts workers from countries with fewer opportunities [1]. [4] Examiner insight: Place the push factor in the home country and the pull factor in the destination. Mixing the two, or giving two push factors, loses the second pair of marks.

6. (a) Output per head = total output ÷ population: 60 ÷ 4 = 15; 168 ÷ 8 = 21; 276 ÷ 12 = 23 [1]; 352 ÷ 16 = 22; 380 ÷ 20 = 19 [1]. (b) Optimum = 12 million (highest output per head, 23) [1]. (c) The last 4 million people add 380 − 352 = 28 billion [1], which is 7 per person, far below the average of 19, so average output per head falls [1]. (d) Technology raises output per worker [1], so each population size produces more and the peak of output per head shifts to a larger population [1]. [7] Examiner insight: Define the optimum as highest output per head. Picking the population with the highest total output (20 million) is a common wrong answer and cannot gain the mark.

7. (a) Aged 0-14 = 11 + 10 = 21% and aged 65+ = 4 + 7 = 11% [1]. Aged 15-64 = 100 − 21 − 11 = 68% [1]. Dependants per 100 = 32 ÷ 68 × 100 = 47.1 [1]. (b) Women outnumber men aged 65 and over (7 against 4) [1], probably because women have longer life expectancy [1]. (c) Government spending on pensions and healthcare rises because 11% are aged 65 and over [1], and the 68% of working age pay the taxes that fund this, so each worker may face a heavier burden [1]. Second effect, such as fewer children needing schools, so spending on education could fall or be redirected [1], or labour shortages that may lead the government to raise the retirement age or allow more immigration [1]. [9] Examiner insight: Show how the dependants are grouped before dividing. In part (c), link each effect to the government budget or labour market, not just to “more old people”.

8. (a) Real GDP per head growth = 1.042 ÷ 1.028 − 1 [1] = 0.01362 [1] = 1.36% (accept 1.4%) [1]. (b) GDP per head is an average [1], so it can rise while the gains go to a small group, with others no better off [1]. Accept: it ignores health, working hours or the environment. [5] Examiner insight: A quick estimate of 4.2 − 2.8 = 1.4 shows the idea. Dividing one growth rate by the other would answer a different question, so state which method you use.

9. Fewer working-age men reduces the labour force and may cause shortages in some jobs, cutting output [1], although the labour left behind may be paid more [1]. Families may receive money sent home by the workers abroad [1], which raises spending and living standards in those households [1]. Accept: fewer future births if women lack partners; social strain. [4] Examiner insight: A two-way answer with one cost and one benefit is acceptable when the question asks for effects. Both effects must link to the gender imbalance, not to emigration in general.

10. Costs: fewer workers and taxpayers [1], so pensions and healthcare for older people are harder to pay for [1]; weaker demand for housing and goods, so firms may close or cut investment [1]. Benefits: less pressure on resources and the environment [1], and if the country was over-populated, output per head may rise [1]. Evaluation: the effect depends on the starting position relative to the optimum [1], on the speed of the fall, which gives time to adapt [1], and on whether productivity or immigration can offset it [1]. [8] Examiner insight: Finish with a conclusion tied to a named condition, such as whether the country sits above or below its optimum. Costs and benefits listed with no conclusion stay at description.

11. Benefits: a large future workforce [1], a growing market for firms [1], and a low number of pensioners so lower pension costs [1]. Harms: high spending on schools and child health [1], and pressure on housing and food [1]. Unemployment if jobs grow more slowly than the labour force [1]. Judgement: the effect depends on whether the country has enough jobs, capital and skills for the young [1], and whether it is below or above the optimum, so the effect is beneficial in the long run if investment keeps pace and harmful if it does not [1]. [8] Examiner insight: Separate short-run costs (schools, food) from long-run gains (workers). Making a distinction over time is one of the clearest ways to show evaluation.

Where marks are usually lost

• Calculating rates per person, or not per 1,000, and dropping the minus sign on net migration.
• Forgetting migration when finding total population growth.
• Defining optimum population as the largest or most productive total population.
• Saying a high death rate means poor healthcare with no reference to age structure.
• Describing a pyramid without reading the base, middle and top.
• Working out dependants without grouping both the young and the old.
• Listing effects of population change with no chain of reasoning to taxes, spending, jobs or living standards.
• Giving one-sided answers when the question says “evaluate” or “discuss”.

Next steps

• Re-read the study guide and the revision notes.
• Go to the Cambridge O Level Economics hub and use the printable checklist.
• Take one of the free 10-minute diagnostics.
• Book a free trial class at /trial/.

Official syllabus

Cambridge O Level Economics (2281) syllabus for examination in 2026, version 2, published by Cambridge University Press and Assessment (Cambridge International Education). Section 5.3: Population.