Different theoretical frameworks offer competing explanations for the settlement patterns and residential mobility of international migrants. Some highlight migrants' neighbourhood preferences, whereas others emphasise structural constraints in the housing market. This paper aims to test three theories on migrants' socio-spatial mobility—the theories of spatial assimilation, place stratification, and ethnic preference—by investigating the extent to which migrants move away from distressed immigrant-dense neighbourhoods in the Swedish cities of Stockholm and Malmö, as well as the timing of that mobility. Applying discrete-time event history analysis to unique Swedish longitudinal register data, the paper reveals considerable differences in the residential mobility patterns between migrant groups and between the two cities. It also finds that newly arrived migrants are more likely to move away from distressed areas compared with long-established ones. These results cast doubt on the spatial assimilation theory, indicating evidence for the place stratification theory. The paper contributes to an enhanced understanding of the determinants of residential segregation in Swedish metropolitan areas. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

ethnic preference residential mobility segregation place stratification spatial assimilation Sweden

international migration metropolitan area ethnic group residential mobility social segregation Skane Malmo neighborhood Sweden preference behavior Stockholm [Stockholm (CNT)] Stockholm [Sweden] spatial analysis immigrant population