A surface model approach to small area population estimation.

The author applies a surface model approach to the estimation of small-area population and household characteristics. "The representation of population-related information by means of surface concepts offers a way to overcome many of the limitations of traditional, 'fixed' zone-based methods. The approach has the potential to give planners and policy-makers greatly improved flexibility in handling and interpreting spatially referenced data. One practical area of application is the estimation of population at local levels for which the underlying concepts and methods are discussed in this article." excerpt