German age survey

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The German Age Survey (DEAS) is a central source of information about the process of aging and about the age phase in Germany. This is a nationwide representative cross-sectional and longitudinal survey of people in the second half of life, that is, people who are 40 years or older.

The comprehensive study of middle and older adulthood, the second half of life, serves to provide microdata that can be used for social and behavioral research as well as for social reporting. The data obtained in this way form the information basis for political decision-makers, the interested public and scientific research. They make it possible to draw a comprehensive picture of the complex life situations of aging and old people in Germany and to answer current political and scientific questions.

Funding, history and structure of the study

The German Aging Survey (DEAS) is funded by the Federal Ministry for Family, Seniors, Women and Youth (BMFSFJ). It was first realized in 1996 - at that time in cooperation with the research group Age and Life Course of the Free University of Berlin , the research group Psychogerontology of the University of Nijmegen and infas Institute for Applied Social Science , Bonn. In 2000 the study went to the German Center for Aging (DZA), Berlin, where it was further developed and placed on a long-term basis. In 2002 the second, in 2008 the third, in 2011 the fourth, in 2014 the fifth and in 2017 the sixth survey wave of the DEAS. The infas Institute for Applied Social Science is still entrusted with the field work. Since 2008, the DEAS panel (i.e. the repeat survey) has been collected every three years in order to be able to map individual developments more quickly. New basic samples representative of the population will continue to be collected every six years. Social and individual developments can now be viewed over a period of almost 24 years using data from the German Age Survey.

The key findings of the sixth wave of the survey were published in book form in 2019. In addition, further publications are made in the context of specialist journals.

Range of topics

Many questions from the first survey in 1996 were included in the later surveys for reasons of comparability. In some areas, however, the instruments are modified from survey wave to survey wave and expanded according to current research needs. In particular for people who take part in the survey again, the survey tool is shortened so that unchanged living conditions are not recorded again. Overall, the participating people are asked about the following topics:

The DEAS thus covers a wide range of topics. The study is dedicated to the overarching question of the interaction of social differentiation, social inequality positions and quality of life in old age. Basically, two temporal perspectives are taken into account: social change on the one hand and individual development processes on the other. In this context, there is an interdisciplinary connection primarily between socio-political , gerontological , sociological , psychological , economic and nursing-scientific issues.

design

The German Age Survey allows the analysis of cohort differences, i.e. comparisons between groups of people of the same age at different points in time, and thus the investigation of social change as well as longitudinal analyzes, i.e. comparisons of information at specific points in time, i.e. the observation of individual developments over time. The design of the age survey opens up the possibility of describing life situations and contexts in 2014 (current cross-section), analyzing social change over the periods 1996, 2002, 2008 and 2014, as well as the individual development over six, twelve, fifteen, eighteen and twenty-one Years of life. Another perspective results from the comparison of the individual development over six years in the three time windows 1996 to 2002 to 2008 and 2008 to 2014, i.e. the comparison of the development in a certain age segment between two or three birth year groups.

The following samples are currently available from the survey waves from 1996 to 2014:

Wave I.

  • Base sample 1996 (B-1996): disproportionately according to age (40–54, 55–69, 70–85 years), gender and part of the country (east, west) stratified population register sample of the German population living in private households born 1911–1956 (n = 4,838)

Wave II

  • Panel sample 1996-2002 (P-1996-2002) of the survey participants from B-1996 surveyed again in 2002 (n = 1,524)
  • Base sample 2002 (B-2002): analogous to B-1996 sample of the birth cohorts 1917–1962 in the same municipalities as wave 1 (n = 3,084)
  • Sample of foreigners 2002 (A-2002): Random sample of the non-German population living in private households born between 1917 and 1962 in the same communities as wave 1 (n = 586)

Wave III

  • Panel sample 1996-2002-2008 (P-1996-2002-2008) of the survey participants from B-1996 surveyed again in 2008 (n = 991)
  • Panel sample 2002-2008 (P-2002-2008) of the survey participants with German citizenship from B-2002 (n = 1,000) who were interviewed again in 2008
  • Base sample 2008 (B-2008): analogous to B-1996 and B-2002, sample of the birth cohorts 1923–1968 in the same municipalities as in the previous waves (n = 6,205)

Wave IV

  • The survey in 2011 was normally a purely longitudinal survey. All participants in the basic samples from 1996 to 2008 who were willing to participate in the panel were the basis for the 2011 survey. A total of 4,854 people were interviewed again. Of these, 1,039 people came from the 1996 base sample, 957 participants from the 2002 base survey and 2,858 from the last base sample from 2008.

Wave v

  • Panel sample 1996-2002-2008-2011-2014 (P-1996-2002-2008-2011-2014) of participants from B-1996 surveyed again in 2014 (n = 887)
  • Panel sample 2002-2008-2011-2014 (P-2002-2008-2011-2014) of participants from B-2002 surveyed again in 2014 (n = 866)
  • Panel sample 2008-2011-2014 (P-2008-2011-2014) of the participants from B-2008 surveyed again in 2014 (n = 2,569)
  • Base sample 2014 (B-2014): analogous to B-1996, B-2002 and B-2008 drawn sample of the birth cohorts 1929–1974 in the same municipalities as in the previous waves (n = 6,002)

The next survey took place in 2017 and the data is currently being adjusted and evaluated.

Wave VI

  • Panel sample 1996-2002-2008-2011-2014-2017 (P-1996-2002-2008-2011-2014-2017) of the participants from B-1996 who were interviewed again in 2017
  • Panel sample 2002-2008-2011-2014-2017 (P-2002-2008-2011-2014-2017) of the survey participants with German citizenship from B-2002 who were interviewed again in 2017
  • Panel sample 2008-2011-2014-2017 (P-2008-2011-2014-2017) of the survey participants from B-2008 who were interviewed again in 2017
  • Panel sample 2014–2017 (P-2014-2017) of the survey participants from B-2014 who were interviewed again in 2017

The next survey is planned for 2020.

Results

The data of the age survey are made available to the general public and the scientific audience in the form of edited volumes, journal articles and press releases. A free short version was published by the Federal Ministry for Families, Seniors, Women and Youth. [Footnote to https://www.bmfsfj.de/bmfsfj/service/publikationen/frauen-und-maenner-in-der-zweiten-lebenshaelfte---aelterhaben-im-sozialen-wandel/135042]

In addition, the research data center of the German Center for Aging (FDZ-DZA) provides research with the microdata of the German Aging Survey (DEAS) free of charge for scientific purposes and advises scientists on their use.

literature

  • C. Vogel, M. Wettstein, C. Tesch-Römer (eds.): Women and men in the second half of life - getting older in the face of social change. Springer VS, Wiesbaden 2019, ISBN 978-3-658-25078-2
  • K. Mahne, JK Wolff, J. Simonson, C. Tesch-Römer (eds.): Aging in change. Two decades of the German Age Survey. (DEAS). Springer VS, Wiesbaden 2017, ISBN 978-3-658-12501-1 .
  • A. Motel-Klingebiel, S. Wurm, C. Tesch-Römer (Eds.): Aging in change. Findings of the German Age Survey (DEAS). Kohlhammer, Stuttgart 2010, ISBN 978-3-17-021595-5 .
  • C. Tesch-Römer, H. Engstler, S. Wurm (Ed.): Getting old in Germany. Social change and individual development in the second half of life. VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2006, ISBN 3-531-14858-3 .
  • M. Kohli, H. Künemund (Ed.): The second half of life. Social situation and participation as reflected in the age survey. 2nd, expanded edition. VS-Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2005, ISBN 3-531-14496-0 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ German Age Survey
  2. ↑ C. Vogel, M. Wettstein, C. Tesch-Römer (eds.): Women and men in the second half of life - getting older in social change. Springer VS, Wiesbaden 2019, ISBN 978-3-658-25078-2 .
  3. ↑ DEAS publication list