Factors Affecting Demand

Other Factors That Shift Demand Curves

Changes in the Composition of the Population

The proportion of elderly citizens in the United States population is rising. It rose from 9.8 percent in 1970 to 12.6 percent in 2000 and will be a projected (by the U.S. Census Bureau) 20 percent of the population by 2030. A society with relatively more children, like the United States in the 1960s, will have greater demand for goods and services like tricycles and day care facilities. A society with relatively more elderly persons, as the United States is projected to have by 2030, has a higher demand for nursing homes and hearing aids. Similarly, changes in the size of the population can affect the demand for housing and many other goods. Each of these changes in demand will be shown as a shift in the demand curve.