Final answer:
No, the population of a country will not immediately begin to decline if its total fertility rate falls below the replacement rate due to the effects of population momentum and other factors such as immigration and mortality rates.
Step-by-step explanation:
If the total fertility rate (TFR) of a country drops below its replacement rate, the population of the country will not immediately begin to decline. The population change over time is influenced by several factors, including the existing population structure, mortality rates, and the levels of immigration. A fertility rate below the replacement rate, typically considered as a TFR of 2.1 children per woman, suggests that in the long term, without immigration, the population will decline. However, due to the population momentum, which is the impact of past and current birth and death rates, a population may continue to grow for some years even after the TFR falls below the replacement rate.
The concept of fertility rate relates to the average number of children born to a woman over her lifetime, whereas family size refers to the number of living children raised by parents in the same household. A decrease in family size is often observed with increased urbanization and industrialization. Contrarily, factors like economic and social crisis can lead to a decrease in birth rates, as seen in cases where countries have experienced a population decline.
An example of a country where the TFR has an impact on population dynamics is Malaysia. Despite the fertility rate dropping to 2.1, the population will not stabilize until the rate decreases further, unless there are changes in immigration patterns or significant shifts in mortality rates. As such, the answer to the question is (b) No, the population will not immediately begin to decline if the TFR drops below the replacement rate.