Spatial Aggregation Methods for Investigating the MAUP Effects in Migration Analysis

In this paper, we investigate the effects of scale and zone configuration on migration indicators and spatial interaction model parameters using a software system known as the IMAGE Studio. Internal migration flows in the United Kingdom and the local authority districts between which they move are aggregated into sets of increasingly fewer and larger polygons using alternative zone design algorithms. Indicators of migration intensity, impact and distance are revealed to vary significantly by scale but less so by zonation, whereas migration effectiveness and distance show greater scale independence but more sensitivity to zone configuration. Equal area and population optimised regions improve the quality of measures to a certain degree depending upon the imposition of shape constraints.