Malthusian Trap

The Malthusian trap is a theory proposed by Thomas Malthus, suggesting that population growth tends to outpace food production. When resources are abundant, populations thrive and grow rapidly. However, as the population increases, the demand for food also rises, eventually exceeding supply. This leads to scarcity, famine, disease, and conflict, which then reduce the population. Essentially, societies may experience cycles of growth and decline due to the limits of resources. The trap emphasizes the challenges of sustaining human populations as they grow, highlighting the balance between production and consumption.