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Economic Insecurity: Trade Dependencies and Their Weaponization in History

Do trade dependencies leave countries vulnerable to geopolitical coercion? We study the economic costs of trade and financial sanctions, from 1920 to the present. We first develop a continuous measure of sanction intensity, using bilateral commodity-level data to calculate the importance of specific flows that fall under sanctions. We find that sanctions inflict relatively small costs on average: sanctioning ...

Hegemonic Globalization

How do shifts in the global balance of power shape the world economy? We propose a theory of alignment-based “hegemonic globalization,” built on two central premises: countries differ in their preferences over policies (such as the rule of law or regulatory frameworks) and trade between any two countries increases with the degree of alignment in these policies. Hegemons promote policy alignment and ...

Heat Monitor 2024: Following the Energy Crisis, Prices for Heating Energy Sources Are Developing Very Differently

In 2024, the heating energy demand of households in Germany remained at a similar level as in 2023. Thus, the heating energy savings achieved during the energy crisis were maintained, as data from real estate service provider ista SE show. Compared to 2023, CO₂ emissions fell by three percent after adjusting for temperature. Although heating energy prices rose on average by only 6.2 percent in 2024, ...

LIVESTREAM: Industrial policy and free trade – Managing tensions, exploiting synergies

Free, fair, and diversified trade plays a crucial role in the development of new technologies and thus also in the success of industrial and innovation policy strategies. Access to critical raw materials and other inputs, such as semiconductors or steel scrap, is often a prerequisite for the development of new technologies, including in the important areas of digitalization and decarbonization. At...

SOEP-LEE2-Entrepreneurs

To address persistent data limitations in entrepreneurship research, the SOEP-LEE2 project is being implemented in cooperation with the Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) and the Helmut Schmidt University (HSU). The project aims to create a unique linked data infrastructure that connects detailed individual-level information on entrepreneurs, including their personal and household characteristics, with...

Less Meat on the Table: Findings from the German Socio-Economic Panel 2016–2022

Based on the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP), this article investigates the recent development of meat consumption in Germany and selected socio-demographic determinants of meat-related dietary habits. In line with official data, the SOEP shows a downward trend in the frequency of meat consumption and an upward trend in self-reported vegetarianism for 2016–2022. Women, the better educated, singles, ...

Hegemony and International Alignment

This article explores the interplay between economic hegemony and political alignment. Using theoretical and empirical insights from Broner et al. (2024), we posit that hegemonic states, like the United States, foster political alignment, which enhances globalization. We use UN voting data to proxy for international alignment and show that hegemons induce alignment. These data have shortcomings, however. ...

Unequal Returns? Wealth and Debt Gradients in Health Among Immigrants and Natives in Norway

Background: Socioeconomic status (SES) is positively associated with health, but these benefits are not equally shared across groups. The Minorities’ Diminished Returns (MDRs) framework posits that marginalized groups derive weaker health returns from economic resources than majority populations. Extending this framework to a migration context, this study examines wealth - and debt – health gradients ...

Split Questionnaire Designs as a Clever Way to Make Surveys Shorter

Revision and Cross-cultural Adaptation of the Human Values Scale for Self-completion Modes

Since its first round, the European Social Survey (ESS) has included a 21-item measure of ten basic human values shared across cultures, known as the Human Values Scale (HVS), developed by Shalom H. Schwartz. Recently, the scale has been revised to a new 20-item HVS with shorter, simpler items (usually only one sentence instead of two sentences per item in the past version) and introducing a single ...