Residential mobility and strength of social ties: Regional analysis in Finland

Multiple factors can influence the rates of residential mobility flows between different subregions of a country. Studies have often focused on demographic and economic factors, but social conditions may be relevant as well. We examined whether the strength of social ties (i.e., social support, loneliness, social trust, community and cultural activities, and meeting other people) were associated with population migration rates across 299 municipalities of Finland. Data for the social characteristics were derived from the large Regional Health and Wellbeing study (n=100,750 respondents) aggregated to the level of municipalities using multilevel regression with post-stratification. Residential mobility rates were derived from census data. Municipalities with higher levels of social support, higher social trust, more cultural activities, and more frequent social contacts had higher net migration rates, that is, more people moving in than out of the municipality. Social support and cultural activities were more strongly associated with (higher) in-migration than with out-migration rates. Social trust and frequency of meeting people were more strongly associated with (lower) out-migration than with in-migration. The findings provide empirical support for the hypothesis that regions with stronger social ties are more attractive destinations for within-country residential mobility.