The design and use of migration indices and indicators

Over the past 20 years, scholars and practitioners have built indices to measure a variety of migration policies across countries and regions. It is now common to encounter research published in top academic outlets that uses migration indices as either dependent or main independent variables. In this chapter, we address the question of how to design indices and develop indicators for comparative migration research that meet the current standards of index building. The chapter first discusses what indices and indicators are in the context of migration and the kind of research questions they help to address. Next, we provide an overview of the type of migration indices that exist, identifying their applications as well as their limitations for research. Finally, we explain how to construct a migration policy index, covering all phases of the process, from conceptualization to the identification of main dimensions, data collection and transparency, measurement, aggregation, validation, and publication.

doi: 10.4337/9781035306855.00025