Indicators of Migration - on the measurement of scales and types of migration

The sociologically accurate measuring of migration requires as a prerequisite a detailed definition of terms and the possibility of adequate operationalisation of the migration phenomenon. The existing migration statistics does not fulfil these requirements due to various reasons; it constitutes a neglected field within official statistics. Processes of migration must not be registered in one dimension only - migration is much more to be understood as a complex phenomenon consisting of various causes for migrations and different forms of migration.

The official statistics on migration in Germany shows certain deficits, especially from a methodological point of view. In the political discourse, figures are also frequently used incorrectly.

The project aims at developing theoretically sound indicators which allow migration to be adequately measured. The project not only takes into consideration officially recorded migration processes, but also focuses on non-documented, illegal migration flows which are difficult to quantify.

Funding: Stiftung Bevölkerung, Migration und Umwelt
Completed: 2001
Researcher: Harald W. Lederer

Publication: Indikatoren der Migration. Zur Messung des Umfangs und der Arten von Migration in Deutschland unter besonderer Berücksichtigung des Ehegatten und Familiennachzugs sowie der illegalen Migration, Harald W. Lederer, efms, Bamberg 2004, 291 pages (German). ISBN 3-927351-10-5