Socioeconomic Characteristics of Growing and Declining Nonmetropolitan Counties, 1970

Population decline can adversely affect an area's social and economic composition, its age structure, the structure of its labor force, and its ability to generate income to support essential programs and activities. Counties with declining population have a deficit of working age population and a relatively high proportion of dependent age groups. Declining counties trail the growing counties in family income, labor force participation by females, and employment in manufacturing; they are characterized by much higher than average employment in low-wage and low-skill extractive industries. A substantial number of counties that declined during the 1960's are currently experiencing population growth. Hence, population decline is not necessarily irreversible; not all declining areas are being bypassed by the process of national economic growth