A Level Sociology OCR Practice Exam

The correct interpretation for the birth rate in the UK in 2018, relative to 2012, is that it decreased by 3.5%. This figure aligns with demographic trends observed in the UK during that period, where overall birth rates showed a decline over several years leading up to 2018. In recent years, various factors have contributed to this decline, including socio-economic changes, increased participation of women in higher education and the workforce, and shifting attitudes towards family size and childbearing age. Such trends are common in developed nations where the focus on career and financial stability often precedes starting a family. The other figures, while they represent possible movements in birth rates, do not accurately reflect the actual data for the UK for that time frame. The 9.9% decline and the 5.0% increase respectively suggest a more extreme fluctuation than what was observed, while the notion of no change contradicts the downward trend evident in the statistics. Hence, the decrease of 3.5% serves as the most accurate representation of birth rate changes between 2012 and 2018.