Migration is commonly defined by a temporal and a spatial dimension. It is generally agreed that these dimensions are problematic and may seriously distort understanding of migration, but data constraints have effectively obstructed further insights. This article focuses on the spatial dimension where migration is typically defined as movement across administrative borders. Borders usually serve as proxies for migration distance, but the validity of such proxies is largely unknown, posing a considerable challenge to migration research. Using data for all internal migrants in Sweden, the only known country where migration distances are available in sufficient detail, we present the first accurate description of actual migration distances and investigate the relationship between actual migration distances and migrationdefining boundaries. More specifically, we examine how a) the volumes of migration and b) the characteristics of migrants change when migration distances vary and when different types of migration-defining boundaries are employed. The findings show that notable shares of short-distance migrants are included almost regardless of which migration-defining boundary is employed, but migrant differentials are less affected than might be expected.

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The spatial dimension in the definition of internal migration usually refers to the distance someone has to move to be regarded as a migrant. Lack of precise data on migration distances, however, has obliged migration researchers to use aggregate distance measures whose accuracy is largely unknown, raising potentially serious validity concerns for research. The aim of this paper is to examine the accuracy of standard aggregate measures of migration distance and to seek practical means for improving their validity. Employing uniquely detailed data where individual migration distances for an entire country's population have been measured with considerable accuracy, the paper compares variants of aggregate distance measures with the actual distance travelled by individual migrants. For the first time, the results shed empirical light on some of the weaknesses of aggregate migration distance measures and, more importantly, also point to their usefulness. The findings show that there is a significant potential to improve the accuracy of migration distance measures; practical suggestions for overcoming the difficulties of using aggregate distance measures are provided.

Past research has established a positive relationship between transitions to marriage and transitions into ownership. This paper explores how this relationship is changing by following a population as it advances through the Second Demographic Transition. Following a rational choice model for tenure decisions, it is hypothesized that the Second Demographic Transition is likely to affect the relationship between partnership and tenure in two ways. First, the preferences for ownership unique to marriage are likely to decline. Second, the importance of an extra income, especially for men, is likely to increase. Evidence is found supporting both these assertions for the population of Gävle, Sweden, between 1975 and