SOEP-Core v29 (data 1984-2012)

Publications using this file should refer to the above DOI infoFind an explanation on the usage of DOI here.and cite following references

• Goebel, Jan, Markus M. Grabka, Stefan Liebig, Martin Kroh, David Richter, Carsten Schröder, and Jürgen Schupp. 2019. The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP). Jahrbücher für Nationalökonomie und Statistik (Journal of Economics and Statistics) 239 (2), 345-360. (https://doi.org/10.1515/jbnst-2018-0022)

If you do not exclude the cases of the migration samples in your analysis, then please also cite the following reference:

• Herbert Brücker, Martin Kroh, Simone Bartsch, Jan Goebel, Simon Kühne, Elisabeth Liebau, Parvati Trübswetter, Ingrid Tucci & Jürgen Schupp. 2014. The new IAB-SOEP Migration Sample: an introduction into the methodology and the contents. SOEP Survey Paper 216 (PDF, 444.25 KB), Series C. Berlin, Nürnberg: DIW Berlin.

If you do not exclude the cases of the refugee samples in your analysis, please also cite: 

If you use data from the SOEP-LEE2 surveys, please also cite:

• Wenzel Matiaske, Torben Dall Schmidt, Christoph Halbmeier, Martina Maas, Doris Holtmann, Carsten Schröder, Tamara Böhm, Stefan Liebig, and Alexander S. Kritikos. 2023. SOEP-LEE2 : Linking Surveys on Employees to Employers in Germany. Jahrbücher für Nationalökonomie und Statistik Data Observer, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1515/jbnst-2023-0031.

If you would like to refer more specifically, please also cite:

• Schröder, Carsten, Johannes König, Alexandra Fedorets, Jan Goebel, Markus M. Grabka, Holger Lüthen, Maria Metzing, Felicitas Schikora, and Stefan Liebig. 2020. The economic research potentials of the German Socio-Economic Panel study. German Economic Review 21 (3), 335-371. (https://doi.org/10.1515/ger-2020-0033)
• Giesselmann, Marco, Sandra Bohmann, Jan Goebel, Peter Krause, Elisabeth Liebau, David Richter, Diana Schacht, Carsten Schröder, Jürgen Schupp, and Stefan Liebig. 2019. The Individual in Context(s): Research Potentials of the Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP) in Sociology. European Sociological Review 35 (5), 738-755. (https://doi.org/10.1093/esr/jcz029)
• Jacobsen, Jannes, Magdalena Krieger, Felicitas Schikora, and Jürgen Schupp. 2021. Growing Potentials for Migration Research using the German Socio-Economic Panel Study. Jahrbücher für Nationalökonomie und Statistik 241 (4), 527-549. (https://doi.org/10.1515/jbnst-2021-0001)
• Fedorets, Alexandra, Stefan Kirchner, Jule Adriaans, and Oliver Giering. 2022. Data on Digital Transformation in the German Socio-Economic Panel. Jahrbücher für Nationalökonomie und Statistik 242 (5-6), 691-705. (https://doi.org/10.1515/jbnst-2021-0056)

SOEP-Core v29

SOEP-Core v29.1

The new data distribution (1984-2012) "SOEP v29" provides, for the most recent survey year 2012, the usual wave-specific data files BCPBRUTTO, BCP, BCPKAL, BCPGEN, BCPAGE17, BCHBRUTTO, BCH, BCHGEN, BCKIND, and BBPLUECKE as well as the updated files with a longitudinal component (PFAD files, biography files, spell data, and weighting factors).

1. New subsample K

In 2012, we added a new refreshment sample with 1,526 new households (Sample K). In total, 12,322 households were interviewed as part of the 2012 fieldwork. As with previous general population samples, the refreshment sample K was  realized by using a multi-stage stratified sampling design. Refreshment sample K resulted in a very similar response rate of 34.7 % compared to our last Refreshment Sample J. Thus, the general downward trend in participation was successfully stopped through a range of measures including centralized face-to-face interviewer training, better pay for interviewers, and more attractive incentives for respondents.

In the current refreshment samples, fieldwork is conducted exclusively by CAPI, as it was with the previous refreshments H (2006), I (2009), and J (2011). Similarly to our other refreshment samples, data collection is focused on three main questionnaires: the household, the individual, and the youth questionnaire. Thus, no supplementary questionnaires were used with respondents in wave 1. The reason for focusing on the key questionnaires is to avoid "overburdening" respondents with a lengthy wave 1 interview.

2. Revision of the weighting and estimation procedure

In version SOEP v29 of the SOEP data, the data from subsamples J and K (first collected in 2011 and 2012, respectively) have been adjusted to the German Microcensus for the number of employed people in households of different sizes as well as for the number of private households receiving Unemployment Benefit II (ALG II). This correction prevents an overestimation of households receiving ALG II in the unweighted samples J and K.

Also, for all newly drawn samples since 1998, a minor adjustment has been made to the definition of households containing foreign nationals. The criterion is no longer the household head but the presence of at least one person of foreign nationality in the household. The revision was made due to a slightly increasing discrepancy between the reference person chosen in the German Microcensus and the household head in the SOEP.

3. New datasets / variables

• In 2012, the SOEP replicated its wealth module for the fourth time after 1988, 2002, and 2007. Due to the higher response burden in first-wave respondents, we did not survey wealth in the most recent refreshment sample K (N=1506 households). For the estimation of totals, we therefore recommend to use the cross-sectional household and person weights covering "old" samples A through J only and excluding wave 1 units emanating from Sample K, i.e. BCHRFAJ and BCPHRFAJ.
• COGNIT: For the short cognitive tests implemented in the survey year 2006 we can now provide the first repeat, including an additional word knowledge test. The name of the dataset changed from COGNIT06 to COGNIT, because both survey years are now included in long format. A detailed documentation of the first test can be found in Schupp et al. (2008) Erfassung kognitiver Leistungspotentiale Erwachsener im Sozio-oekonomischen Panel (SOEP), DIW Berlin, Data Documentation 32 (PDF, 447.63 KB).
• Two new variables in $PGEN: The variable SNDJOB$$ represents the imputed current gross labor income from a second job, generated for all SOEP respondents who are employed in each respective wave. Information about gross income from the second job was first asked in 1995 (wave L). The respective imputation flag is the variable IMPSND$$.
• For the first time, respondents were asked their place of birth. This information including the coordinates of the respective municipality is available at our guest workstations at the Research Data Center SOEP.
• A new dataset HCONSUM with generated data from the consumption module used in the SOEP in the year 2010. A detailed documentation (PDF, 1.5 MB) is available online.

4. Improvements and Bug Fixes

• Revision of the $STELL codes (Relationship to the head of household) to differentiate between biological child and stepchild, adoptive child etc. :

Please note that this also affects the corresponding variables in the dataset $KIND (and KIDLONG) and BIOPAREN.

• We do no longer have additional variables on birth date (GEBJAHR and GEBMONAT) and sex (SEX) in our dataset KIDLONG, please use instead the more intensively checked versions in PPFAD.
• Last year, we already provided the interviewer data with a new variable, INTID, which is unified across all waves and takes the place of the respective file-specific variables ($INTNR). The new variable was determined through one-time generation of a random number; it is therefore fixed and remains consistent in an integrated master file (not contained in the data distribution) for SOEPcore as well as for FiD (Families in Germany) and SOEP-IS (innovation panel). In addition to generating the INTIDs and updating the interviewer characteristics in INTVIEW, we have also made the following revisions:
  • The dataset INTVIEW no longer contains just the interviewer with interviewer characteristics but also all available interviewer numbers. To provide this information, we extracted all interviewer numbers from all available datasets. Flag variables in INTVIEW show whether other interviewer characteristics are available for this particular INTID or not.
  • A total of 181 INTIDs were newly assigned in the updated data, allowing these to be directly linked with the respective interviewer characteristics. This is due to the assignment of numbers by Infratest in East Germany from 1990 to 1995, when there were still some independent interviewers (IBB-numbers) for the East sample whose numbers were assigned according to a different system. These had to be harmonized with the interviewer numbers that were merged later.
• BIOAGE03: the codes for personality was changed from 1-11 to 0-10 and is now consistent with the codes for personality in bioage06.
• BIOAGE06: in 2008, for personality, the value zero was mistakenly coded -2. This mistake was corrected. This resulted in up to 65 additional valid cases for some traits in the survey year 2008.
• $FAMSTD: In generating current marital status, current and previous year were switched for some cases in 2011 in v28.
• In 2012, the questionnaire provides one-time-only information on the size of the local establishment in addition to the size of the entire company (BETR$$). The enriched questionnaire revealed that in previous interviews, some individuals mistakenly provided information on the local establishment size instead of the entire company size, especially if their entire company had 2000 or more employees. Due to the importance of longitudinal consistency, these persons were identified, and their 2012 original value of the entire company size BETR12 was replaced by their value of the local establishment size. These modifications also affected the variable ALLBET12. Please see the data documentation for further details.
• The variable RUEBSTD ("overtime hours during last month" in 2001) had cases with incorrect non-response missings (-1), since respondents without overtime mistakenly were assigned to this category. In the corrected version, the value for these respondents is correctly coded as zero overtime hours.
• With the variable vh4601 and the equivalent variables in the following years, the label "contributions over 2,500 euros" was used, but actually the questionnaire asked for "contributions over 500 euros". The label was corrected.
• The variables ZERWZEIT and BAERWZEIT ("length of time with firm" in 2009 and 2010) had to be corrected for respondents in sample I who did not have their wave 2009 interview and wave 2010 interview in the respective year but at the beginning of the following year (2010 and 2011). Due to the longitudinal consistency check, these individuals mistakenly received an implausible value (-3) for BAERWZEIT. In the corrected version, the non-missing values of these respondents are considered to be valid and not set to missing.
• LOC1989: In generating the data, persons are now included who never participated. As a result, the -2 means "does not apply, born before 1989" as planned for this variable. Respondents who have never participated and who were unable to gather information from other sources were set to -1 ("no answer").
• The variables EXPFT$$, EXPPT$$, and EXPUE$$ (experience in full-time employment, part-time employment, and unemployment) have been improved. The variables reflect now the total length of full-time/part-time/unemployment in the respondent's career up to the point of the interview in a given year (instead of only up to December of the previous year). Since monthly employment activities are asked retrospectively in the following year, the variables cannot be updated for the most current wave.
• The variable AHINC$$ in dataset $HGEN is no longer part of the data distribution, we recommend to use the completely (multiple) imputed monthly net household income from variables I$HINC$$ (or dataset MIHINC in long format over all years).
• The variables ATATZEIT, AVEBZEIT, AUEBSTD and AERWZEIT were mixed up in the data distribution v28 and had to be corrected:
  • The correct values of ATATZEIT were found in the variable AERWZEIT.
  • The correct values of AVEBZEIT were found in the variable ATATZEIT.
  • The correct values of AUEBSTD were found in the variable AVEBZEIT.
  • The correct values of AERWZEIT were found in the variable AERWZEIT of the data distribution v27.

1984-2012 (Wave BC)

Individual 2012: 2) Individual 2012 Field-de 4) Individual 2012 Field-en
Household (PAPI) 2013: 6) Household (PAPI) 2013 Field-de
Household 2012: 8) Household 2012 Field-de 10) Household 2012 Field-en
Biography 2012: 12) Biography 2012 Field-de
Catch-up Individual 2012: 14) Catch-up Individual 2012 Field-de
Youth (16-17 year-olds) 2013: 16) Youth (16-17 year-olds) 2013 Field-de
Youth (16-17 year-olds) 2012: 18) Youth (16-17 year-olds) 2012 Field-de
Mother and Child (Newborns) 2012: 20) Mother and Child (Newborns) 2012 Field-de 22) Mother and Child (Newborns) 2012 Field-en
Mother and Child (2-3-year-olds) 2012: 24) Mother and Child (2-3-year-olds) 2012 Field-de 26) Mother and Child (2-3-year-olds) 2012 Field-de
Mother and Child (5-6-year-olds) 2012: 28) Mother and Child (5-6-year-olds) 2012 Field-de 30) Mother and Child (5-6-year-olds) 2012 Field-de
Parents and Child (7-8-year-olds) 2012: 32) Parents and Child (7-8-year-olds) 2012 Field-de 34) Parents and Child (7-8-year-olds) 2012 Field-en
Mother and Child (9-10-year-olds) 2012: 36) Mother and Child (9-10-year-olds) 2012 Field-de 38) Mother and Child (9-10-year-olds) 2012 Field-en
Deceased person 2012: 40) Deceased person 2012 Field-de
Grip Strength 2012: 42) Grip Strength 2012 Field-de
Interviewer (PAPI) 2012: 44) Interviewer (PAPI) 2012 Field-de 46) Interviewer (PAPI) 2012 Var-de 48) Interviewer (PAPI) 2012 Var-en

Please find all sample specific questionnaires of this year and all questionnaires of previous years on this site

1) Documentation of Sample Sizes and Panel Attrition in the German Socio Economic Panel (SOEP) (1984 until 2012)

2) SOEP 2012 – Documentation on Biography and Life History Data for SOEP v29

3) SOEP 2012 – Documentation of the Person-related Meta-dataset PPFAD for SOEP v29

4) SOEP 2012 - Documentation of the Household-related Meta-dataset HPFAD for SOEP v29

5) SOEP 2012 – Documentation of Person-related Status and Generated Variables in PGEN for SOEP v29

6) SOEP 2012 – Documentation of Household-related Status and Generated Variables in HGEN for SOEP v29

7) SOEP 2012 – Codebook for the $PEQUIV File 1984-2012: CNEF Variables with Extended Income Information for the SOEP

8) SOEP 2012 – Documentation on Individual Health Status Variables in HEALTH for SOEP v29

9) SOEP 2012 – Documentation of Person-related Variables on Children in $KIND for SOEP v29

10) SOEP 2012 – Documentation of the Pooled Dataset on Children in $KIDLONG for SOEP v29

1) Handgreifkraftmessung im Sozio-oekonomischen Panel (SOEP) 2006 und 2008

2) Documentation on ISCED Generation Using the CAMCES Tool in the IAB-SOEP Migration Samples M1/M2

3) The new IAB-SOEP Migration Sample: an introduction into the methodology and the contents

4) The Request for Record Linkage in the IAB-SOEP Migration Sample

5) Flowcharts for the Integrated Individual-Biography Questionnaire of the IAB-SOEP Migration Sample 2013

6) The Measurement of Labor Market Entries with SOEP Data: Introduction to the Variable EINSTIEG_ARTK

7) Job submission instructions for the SOEPremote System at DIW Berlin – Update 2014

8) SOEP 2015 – Informationen zu den SOEP-Geocodes in SOEP v32

9) Editing and Multiple Imputation of Item Non-response in the Wealth Module of the German Socio-Economic Panel

10) Die Vercodung der offenen Angaben zu den Ausbildungsberufen im Sozio-Oekonomischen Panel

11) Das Studiendesign der IAB-BAMF-SOEP Befragung von Geflüchteten

12) Scales Manual IAB-BAMF-SOEP Survey of Refugees in Germany – revised version

13) SOEP 2010 – Preparation of data from the new SOEP consumption module: Editing, imputation, and smoothing

14) SOEP Scales Manual (updated for SOEP-Core v32.1)

15) Kognitionspotenziale Jugendlicher - Ergänzung zum Jugendfragebogen der Längsschnittstudie Sozio-oekonomisches Panel (SOEP)

16) Die Vercodung der offenen Angaben zur beruflichen Tätigkeit nach der International Standard Classification of Occupations 2008 (ISCO08) - Direktvercodung - Vorgehensweise und Entscheidungsregeln bei nicht eindeutigen Angaben

17) Die Vercodung der offenen Angaben zur beruflichen Tätigkeit nach der Klassifikation der Berufe 2010 (KldB 2010): Vorgehensweise und Entscheidungsregeln bei nicht eindeutigen Angaben

18) Multi-Itemskalen im SOEP Jugendfragebogen

19) Dokumentation zum Entwicklungsprozess des Moduls „Einstellungen zu sozialer Ungleichheit“ im SOEP (v38)

20) SOEP-CoV: Project and Data Documentation

21) Missing Income Data in the German SOEP: Incidence, Imputation and its Impact on the Income Distribution

22) Zur Erhebung des adaptiven Verhaltens von zwei- und dreijährigen Kindern im Sozio-oekonomischen Panel (SOEP)

23) SOEP 2013 – Documentation of Generated Person-Level Long-Term Care Variables in PFLEGE

24) SOEP-Core v34 – PFLEGE: Documentation of Generated Person-level Long-term Care Variables

25) SOEP 2006 – TIMEPREF: Dataset on the Economic Behavior Experiment on Time Preferences in the 2006 SOEP Survey

26) SOEP-Core v34: Codebook for the EU-SILC-Like Panel for Germany Based on the SOEP

27) Assessing the distributional impact of "imputed rent" and "non-cash employee income" in microdata : Case studies based on EU-SILC (2004) and SOEP (2002)

28) SOEP-Core v36: Codebook for the EU-SILC-like panel for Germany based on the SOEP

All documentation for filtering can be found on this page

1) SOEP 2012 – Methodenbericht zum Befragungsjahr 2012 (Welle 29) des Sozio-oekonomischen Panels

2) SOEP FiD – 'Familien in Deutschland' 2012: Methodenbericht

3) SOEP 2012 – Methodenbericht zur SOEP-Retrospektiverhebung "Frühe Kindheit im (Nach-)Kriegskontext"