science

Theory of intervening opportunities

Theory of intervening opportunities is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Theory of intervening opportunities rather than just read about it. In short: Theory of intervening opportunities attempts to describe the likelihood of migration. Its hypothesis is that this likelihood is influenced most by the opportunities to settle at the destination, less by distance or population pressure at the starting point.

Key takeaways

Theory of intervening opportunities belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Theory of intervening opportunities to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Theory of intervening opportunities from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Theory of intervening opportunities attempts to describe the likelihood of migration. Its hypothesis is that this likelihood is influenced most by the opportunities to settle at the destination, less by distance or population pressure at the starting point. Stouffer's law of intervening opportunities states, "The number of persons going a given distance is directly proportional to the number of opportunities at that distance and inversely proportional to the number of intervening opportunities." Stouffer theorises that the amount of migration over a given distance is directly proportional to the number of opportunities at the place of destination, and inversely proportional to the number of opportunities between the place of departure and the place of destination. These intervening opportunities may persuade a migrant to settle in a place in the route rather than proceeding to the originally planned destination. Stouffer argued that the volume of migration had less to do with distance and population totals than with the opportunities in each location. This is in contrast to Zipf's Inverse distance law. There are links with Ravenstein's laws of migration 2, 3 and 4.

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Theory of intervening opportunities

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Theory of intervening opportunities claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Theory of intervening opportunities before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Theory of intervening opportunities ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Theory of intervening opportunities

In research: Theory of intervening opportunities appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Theory of intervening opportunities in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Theory of intervening opportunities is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Cross-cultural studies stubs, Demographic economics, Globalization stubs, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Theory of intervening opportunities outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Theory of intervening opportunities in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Theory of intervening opportunities means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Theory of intervening opportunities out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Theory of intervening opportunities in simple terms?

Why does Theory of intervening opportunities matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Theory of intervening opportunities?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Theory of intervening opportunities.