Overurbanization

Overurbanization is a thesis originally developed by scholars of demography, geography, ecology, economics, political science, and sociology in the 20th century to describe cities whose rate of urbanization outpaces their industrial growth and economic development. Overurbanized countries are characterized by an inability to provide for their populations in terms of employment and resources. The term is intentionally comparative and has been used to differentiate between developed and developing countries. Several causes have been suggested, but the most common is rural-push and urban-pull factors in addition to population growth.