Publications Based on SOEP Data: SOEPlit

Loneliness during the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence from five European countries

We use quarterly panel data from the COME-HERE survey covering five European countries to analyse three facets of the experience of loneliness during the COVID-19 pandemic. First, in terms of prevalence, loneliness peaked in April 2020, followed by a U-shape pattern in the rest of 2020, and then remained relatively stable throughout 2021 and 2022. We then establish the individual determinants of loneliness ...

The Dynamics of Household Location Preferences in Germany

Inspired by the literature on social polarisation and residential segregation we draw on a probabilistic approach to pursue the evolution of household location preferences in West Germany. Using microdata from the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) for the period 1984-2020 we demonstrate that structural economic change was accompanied by an increasing preference for residence in compact housing close ...

Fostering Prosperity at the Local Scale: Outcomes of Urban Policy for Deprived Neighbourhoods in Germany

Traditional urban policy focuses mainly on redevelopment measures. Germany’s Social City programme incorporates urban regeneration with support to local communities in deprived neighbourhoods. We use microdata on household characteristics from the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) and microdata on housing prices from the RWI GEO-RED to assess the policy effects on household income and housing markets. ...

A Couple-Perspective on Fertility Outcomes: Do Relative Resources Matter for First and Second Births?

McDonald (2000) has suggested that socio-economic gender equity within couples is a crucial component in shaping women’s fertility decisions. Empirically, however, little is known about how couple dynamics are influencing fertility outcomes. This paper examines if gender equity, measured as relative levels of income, education, work hours, and occupational status, affects the transition to first and ...

What Factors Determine the Gender Gap in Labor Force Participation and Wages among Refugees in Germany? (Master Thesis)

Building up wealth hand in hand? Gendered life course interdependencies of personal wealth within older couples

Angesichts von Rentenkürzungen hat Vermögen als Alternative zu gesetzlichen Renten zur Alterssicherung an Bedeutung zugenommen. Vermögen ist jedoch ungleicher zwischen Frauen und Männern verteilt als Einkommen, wobei Frauen ein durchschnittlich niedrigeres Vermögen haben. Diese Ungleichheit existiert auch innerhalb von Paarbeziehungen. Diese Dissertation untersucht, wie Erwerbs- und Ehebiografien mit ...

Innovation and Regional Development: The Impact of Patenting on Labor Market Outcomes

We estimate the impact of technological innovation on regional labor market outcomes. Our identification strategy exploits pre-reunification complementarities in innovation between East and West Germany. We employ individual-level data from the German Socio-Economic Panel to analyze labor market out- comes. Individuals’ income in West German counties with pre-reunification complementarities increased ...

Trajectories of adolescent life satisfaction

Increasing global policy interest in measuring and improving population wellbeing has prompted academic investigations into the dynamics of lifespan life satisfaction. Yet little research has assessed the complete adolescent age range, although it harbours developmental changes that could affect wellbeing far into adulthood. This study investigates how life satisfaction develops throughout the whole ...

The Intergenerational Persistence of Poverty in High-Income Countries

Exposure to childhood poverty increases the likelihood of adult poverty. However, past research offers conflicting accounts of cross-national variation in the strength of the intergenerational persistence of poverty and the mechanisms through which it is channeled. This study investigates differences in intergenerational poverty in the United States (U.S.), Australia, Denmark, Germany, and United Kingdom ...

Too worried about the environment to have children? Or more worried about the environment after having children? The reciprocal relationship between environmental concerns and fertility

Climate change is one of the central challenges for contemporary societies. It is widely discussed as triggering “climate anxiety,” and as dampening the desire to reproduce, particularly among young people. Conversely, parenthood could affect people’s attitudes and behaviors toward the environment. Empirically, however, little is known about this potentially reciprocal relationship due to the lack ...