Saxon longitudinal study

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Saxon longitudinal study
Ladder: Hendrik Berth , Elmar Brähler ,
Peter Förster , Yve Stöbel-Richter, Markus Zenger
Founding year: 1987
Place: Dresden and Leipzig
Address: Saxon longitudinal study
University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus
FG Applied Medical Psychology and
Medical Sociology
Fetscherstr. 74
01307 Dresden
Website: www.wiedervereinigung.de/sls

The Saxon longitudinal study was launched in 1987 in Leipzig at the Central Institute for Youth Research of the GDR . Since then, an identical panel has been surveyed almost every year . The focus of the study is the social science research into the experience of reunification .

background

The Central Institute for Youth Research (1966 to 1990, headed by Walter Friedrich ) carried out numerous surveys among children and adolescents in the GDR as part of its scientific studies on youth development, often on behalf of the State Office for Youth Issues. In 1987, in cooperation with the Karl Marx University in Leipzig and the University of Education in Zwickau, a three-year survey of then 14-year-old students (more than 1400 participants) began. The results from this first phase of the study before the fall of the Wall (1987 – spring 1989) reflect the disappointments of the then 14 to 16-year-old panel members with socialism in the last years of the GDR.

Then came the peaceful revolution in autumn 1989 and German reunification on October 3, 1990. 587 study participants agreed to continue working. Since then, the study has continued with considerable effort. More than 300 people still take part. The Saxon longitudinal study is not a single or multiple opinion poll, but rather a long-term social science research that is unusual in its structure because it spans social systems. Since 2002 (16th wave of the survey), the issue of unemployment and health has been intensively investigated. Another focus of the study is on questions about partnership and starting a family among young adults. The 31st wave took place in 2019/2020.

The implementation of the Saxon longitudinal study was u. a. financially supported by the DFG , the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung , the Hans-Böckler-Stiftung , the Otto-Brenner-Stiftung of the Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung , the federal foundation to come to terms with the SED dictatorship and the Saxon State Ministry for Science and Art . The questionnaires and data from the study are archived at GESIS .

Attendees

In 1987, all participants attended the 8th grade of a polytechnic high school in the GDR. The participants were around 14 years old. The sample was compiled to be representative of those born in the GDR in 1973. Students from 72 classes from 41 schools, selected at random, were interviewed. The genders are almost equally distributed among the participants.

wave year Attendees
1 1987 1407
3 1989 1281
6th 1991 220
10 1994 259
14th 2000 398
16 2002 420
18th 2004 414
20th 2006 393
22nd 2008 381
24 2010 326
26th 2012 350
28 2015 337
30th 2017 313

At the time of the 30th wave (2017), the participants were around 45 years old. Most live in a partnership (56% married, 33% single, 10% divorced, 1% widowed). 77% have children. Of the participants, 49% have a skilled worker qualification, 23% a technical college qualification and 22% a university qualification, only 2% have no completed vocational training. 21% of the participants live abroad or in the old federal states.

Questions

The Saxon longitudinal study examines u. a. the following questions:

  • What has been going on in the minds of young East Germans in their political consciousness since the reunification of the GDR and the Federal Republic in the long term and in principle, beyond current moods?
  • How have your living conditions, your thoughts and feelings changed during this time?
  • Do you share the view that the goals of the peaceful revolution in autumn 1989 have been achieved today and that the East Germans have thus achieved freedom?
  • Are you happy to live in a united Germany or would you rather have the GDR back?
  • What after-effects does the socialization experienced in the GDR have?
  • Do you feel like citizens of the Federal Republic of Germany or still citizens of the GDR?
  • Are you convinced that capitalism is the best?
  • What do you think of socialist ideals after the collapse of socialism?
  • Were they unemployed and what did that do for them? Have you found that anyone looking for work will find work?
  • How confident do you see your own future and that of your children?
  • How does moving to the old federal states affect young East Germans?
  • What influences partnership and starting a family in young adults?
  • What differences are there between the sexes with regard to the questions?

Individual results of the Saxon longitudinal study

Judgment on German unity

Since 1992, the panelists' approval of German unification has been over 80%. In 2007 they answered in the affirmative 86%. This result was confirmed by a survey conducted by the Mannheim research group Wahlen in October 2009. Although the majority of the participants rejected a return to the political and social conditions of the GDR, support for the turnaround fell from 80% in 1992 to 71% in 2007 from. This trend began in the mid-1990s and expressed dissatisfaction with economic conditions and experiences with unemployment.

The evaluation of the political system

The panel participants' great approval of German unity did not in principle indicate their satisfaction with the current social system. According to surveys, East Germans are less satisfied with the Federal Republic's political system. Only 38% of the panellists in the 2007 survey said they were satisfied or very satisfied with democracy and only 33% of the participants were satisfied or very satisfied with the political system and the current economic order (27%). The idea of democracy is supported equally by almost all participants in East and West, but when it comes to assessing democratic practice, democracy in the new federal states comes off significantly worse. The Politikwissenschaftlerin Bettina Westle performs the differences on the establishment of an independent democratic ideal back in East Germany, which in the idea of a third way, that of itself democratic socialism , orienting. In addition, state-regulating intervention in favor of social redistribution and social equality is more advocated. The sociologist of religion and culture, Detlef Pollack, names three factors for the lower level of satisfaction with democracy in the new federal states: First, the negative economic situation. Second, many East Germans would feel discriminated against as second-class citizens. Thirdly, social justice is felt to be insufficiently realized. Freedom is valued by West Germans mainly in the sense of freedom of action , while East German citizens tend to associate the term freedom with “freedom from want”.

Publications (selection)

Books

  • H. Berth, E. Brähler, M. Zenger, Y. Stöbel-Richter (Eds.): 30 Years of East German Transformation. Social science results and perspectives of the Saxon longitudinal study. Psychosozial-Verlag, Giessen 2020, ISBN 978-3-8379-2784-9
  • H. Berth, E. Brähler, M. Zenger, Y. Stöbel-Richter (Eds.): Faces of the East German Transformation. A portrait of the participants in the Saxon longitudinal study. Psychosozial-Verlag, Giessen 2015, ISBN 978-3-8379-2536-4
  • H. Berth, E. Brähler, M. Zenger, Y. Stöbel-Richter (eds.): Interior views of the transformation. 25 years of the Saxon longitudinal study (1987 to 2012). Psychosozial-Verlag, Giessen 2012, ISBN 978-3-8379-2227-1
  • H. Berth, P. Förster, E. Brähler, Y. Stöbel-Richter: Unity lust and unity frustration. Young East Germans on the way from GDR to German citizens. A long-term social science study from 1987–2006 . Psychosozial-Verlag, Giessen 2007, ISBN 978-3-8980-6589-4
  • P. Förster: Young East Germans in search of freedom. A longitudinal study on the change in political mentality among young East Germans before and after the fall of the Wall . Leske + Budrich, Opladen 2002, ISBN 978-3-8100-3452-6
  • P. Förster, Y. Stöbel-Richter, H. Berth, E. Brähler: The German unity between lust and frustration. Results of the "Saxon Longitudinal Study". Workbooks of the Otto Brenner Foundation, Volume 60 (PDF; 1.4 MB). Otto Brenner Foundation, Frankfurt am Main 2009, ISSN  1863-6934
  • Y. Stöbel-Richter: Fertility and partnership. A longitudinal study of family formation processes over 20 years. Psychosozial-Verlag, Giessen 2010, ISBN 978-3-8379-2026-0

Journal articles and book chapters

  • H. Berth, P. Förster, F. Balck, E. Brähler, Y. Stöbel-Richter: The Influence of Early Childhood Daycare Attendance on the Psyche in Young Adulthood . In: Psychotherapie, Psychosomatik, Medical Psychologie , 2010, 60, pp. 73–77.
  • H. Berth, P. Förster, F. Balck, E. Brähler, Y. Stöbel-Richter: Experiences of East German young people on the way from GDR to German citizen. Results from 20 years of Saxon longitudinal study . In: M. Busch, J. Jeskow, R. Stutz (eds.): Between precarization and protest. The life situations and generational images of young people in East and West . Transcript Verlag , Bielefeld, 2010, pp. 175–194.
  • H. Berth, P. Förster, E. Brähler, M. Zenger, Y. Stöbel-Richter: "We Thälmann pioneers love our socialist fatherland, the German Democratic Republic." - What remains of it after 20 years? In: E. Brähler, I. Mohr (Ed.): 20 years of German unity - facets of a divided reality . psychosozial Verlag , Giessen 2010, pp. 155–171.
  • H. Berth, P. Förster, E. Brähler, M. Zenger, Y. Stöbel-Richter: 20 years of German reunification from the perspective of a group of East German adults. Results of the Saxon longitudinal study 1987 to 2009 . In: Germany Archive , 2010, 43, pp. 787–794.
  • H. Berth, P. Förster, K. Petrowski, A. Hinz, F. Balck, E. Brähler, Y. Stöbel-Richter: Is unemployment inherited? In: Journal for Psychotraumatology, Psychotherapy Science, Psychological Medicine , 2010, 8, pp. 35–43.
  • H. Berth, P. Förster, E. Brähler, A. Fleischmann, M. Zenger, Y. Stöbel-Richter: Unemployment and physical health - selected results of a longitudinal study . In H. Fangerau, S. Kessler (Ed.): Attention and Disregard in Medicine (pp. 215–232). Freiburg: Alber , 2013.
  • H. Berth, P. Förster, E. Brähler, M. Zenger, A. Zimmermann, Y. Stöbel-Richter: Who are the losers of German unity? Results from the Saxon longitudinal study . In: E. Brähler, W. Wagner (ed.): No end to the turn? Perspectives from East and West (pp. 75–87). psychosozial-Verlag, Giessen, 2014.
  • H. Berth, P. Förster, E. Brähler, M. Zenger, A. Zimmermann, Y. Stöbel-Richter: Inner German Migration and Mental Health. Results from the Saxon longitudinal study . In E. Brähler, W. Wagner (ed.): No end to the turn? Perspectives from East and West (pp. 89–101). psychosozial-Verlag, Giessen, 2014
  • P. Förster: Young East Germans today: twice disappointed. Results of a longitudinal study on the change in mentality between 1987 and 2002 . In: From politics and contemporary history , 2003, 15, pp. 6-17.
  • P. Förster: The 30-year-olds in the new federal states: No future in the east! Results of a cross-system longitudinal study . In: Germany Archive , 2004, 37, pp. 23–42.
  • P. Förster, E. Brähler, Y. Stöbel-Richter, H. Berth: The "wound unemployment": Young East Germans, born 1973 . In: From Politics and Contemporary History , 2008, pp. 40–41, 33–43.
  • Y. Stöbel-Richter, E. Brähler, K. Weidner, H. Berth: Epidemiological aspects of starting a family - what has changed in the last 20 years? In: E. Brähler, I. Mohr (Ed.): 20 years of German unity - facets of a divided reality . psychosozial Verlag, Giessen 2010, pp. 124-137.
  • Y. Stöbel-Richter, M. Zenger, H. Berth, E. Brähler: To what extent family planning can be seen as a rational decision making process? In: S. Salzborn, E. Davidov, J. Reinecke (Eds.): Methods, Theories and Empirical Applications in the Social Sciences (pp. 303-307). Wiesbaden: Springer Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften , 2012
  • Y. Stöbel-Richter, M. Zenger, H. Glaesmer, E. Brähler, H. Berth: Health consequences of unemployment . In E. Brähler, W. Kiess, C. Schubert, J. Kiess (eds.): Healthy and educated. Requirements for a modern society (pp. 275–311). Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht , 2012.
  • Y. Stöbel-Richter, M. Zenger, E. Brähler, H. Berth: Starting a family in East Germany after unification . In: Berliner Debatte Initial , 2015, 26 (2), 66–77.
  • M. Zenger, H. Berth, E. Brähler, Y. Stöbel-Richter: Health complaints and unemployment: the role of self-efficacy in a prospective cohort study . In: Journal of Social & Clinical Psychology , 2013, 32, 95–112.

Research reports

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ P. Förster: Young East Germans in search of freedom. A longitudinal study on the change in political mentality among young East Germans before and after the fall of the Wall . Leske + Budrich, Opladen 2002.
  2. ^ W. Friedrich, P. Förster, K. Starke (eds.): The Central Institute for Youth Research Leipzig 1966–1990. History, methods, findings. Edition Ost, Berlin 1999.
  3. ↑ a b History website of the Saxon longitudinal study; Retrieved January 4, 2012
  4. ↑ H. Berth, P. Förster, E. Brähler: Health consequences of unemployment and job insecurity among young adults . In: Das Gesundheitwesen , 2003, 10, pp. 555–560.
  5. ^ Y. Stöbel-Richter: Fertility and partnership. A longitudinal study of family formation processes over 20 years. Psychosozial-Verlag, Giessen 2010.
  6. ^ Participant website of the Saxon longitudinal study; Retrieved January 4, 2012
  7. ↑ Questions Website of the Saxon Longitudinal Study; Retrieved January 4, 2012
  8. ↑ a b Nicole Völtz in: Konstantin Hermann (Ed.): Saxony since the peaceful revolution. Tradition, change, perspectives. Special edition of the Saxon State Center for Political Education. Sax-Verlag 2010. p. 222.