Junior Research Group "Social and Psychological Determinants of Mental Health in the Life Course" (SocPsych-MH)

The aim of the former Junior Research Group SocPsych-MH was to strengthen research on mental health at the SOEP, taking an interdisciplinary perspective. A particular focus was on the interplay between structural factors—from international, national, and regional contexts to family constellations, socio-economic life course trajectories, and individual psychological characteristics—that can create vulnerabilities or resilience to risk factors for mental health.

This focus was reflected in the three complementary themes of three research projects that Hannes Kröger was heading at the SOEP:

The first research project was “The legacy of the GDR and mental health: Risk and protective factors” (DDR-PSYCH, 04/2019 – 07/2023), with its SOEP-based sub-project “Socio-economic trajectories after reunification in Germany—disruptions, continuity, and consequences for mental health”. It compared systematically how socio-economic trajectories and East-West migration can help to explain both individual mental health differences and differences in mental health outcomes at the population level between East and West Germany after reunification. One particular contribution was the integration of the life-course perspective from sociology and theories from psychology to predict vulnerability and resilience factors for mental health.

The second project, “Dynamics of Mental Health of Migrants—Analyzing dynamics of resilience and vulnerabilities using a synthesis of socio-structural and psychological approaches” (DMHM, 05/2019 – 04/2024), followed a similar approach. It took a longitudinal perspective on the mental health of migrants in four countries (the UK, Australia, Germany, and the US). These countries host migrant communities with very different histories and structural compositions. The goal was to test under what circumstances personality characteristics and family structure can become sources of resilience or vulnerability.

The third project, “Longitudinal aspects of the interaction between health and integration of refugees in Germany” (LARGE, 03/2020 – 02/2025), was part of a DFG research unit in the field of public health, “Refugee migration to Germany: A magnifying glass for broader public health challenges” (PH-LENS). PH-LENS considered refugees as a particularly relevant case for the analysis of “othering”. Within PH-LENS, LARGE investigated whether family constellations and regional deprivation can make refugees resilient or vulnerable to experiences of “othering”.

All three research projects shared the approach of identifying sources of vulnerability and resilience with respect to mental health in important demographic groups, drawing on theories from sociology, psychology, and public health.