Publikationen mit SOEP-Daten: SOEPlit

The development and correlated change of narcissism and self-esteem in adulthood

The conceptual and empirical overlap of grandiose narcissism and self-esteem is part of ongoing debate. Whereas cross-sectional findings suggest a moderate correlation between both constructs, evidence on the longitudinal relationship of narcissism and self-esteem is still lacking. Using data of two longitudinal studies consisting of more than 10,000 participants in adulthood, the aim of the present ...

The scientific value of numerical measures of human feelings

Human feelings measured in integers (my happiness is an 8 out of 10, my pain 2 out of 6) have no objective scientific basis. They are “made-up” numbers on a scale that does not exist. Yet such data are extensively collected—despite criticism from, especially, economists—by governments and international organizations. We examine this paradox. We draw upon longitudinal information on the feelings and ...

My Wealth, (Y)Our Life Satisfaction? Sole and Joint Wealth Ownership and Life Satisfaction in Marriage

This study examines the money-subjective well-being nexus by studying the link between changes in jointly and solely (i.e. respondents’ own and their partner’s own) held gross wealth and changes in married individuals’ subjective well-being. Joint assets reflect norms of sharing responsibilities and resources. Solely held assets, in contrast, offer individual economic independence. Using wealth data ...

Can Simulated Experience Be Harnessed to Help People Make Investment Decisions?

To make profitable investment decisions, investors must know and understand their risks. They can learn about these risks in different ways. Evidence suggests that investors who learn from a “risk tool” simulator perceive financial risk more accurately, feel more informed and confident, and thus take on more financial risk. We attempt a conceptual replication of these findings, exploring whether they ...

Older Households: Comparison of Income, Wealth, and Survival in the United States with Selected Countries

Income and wealth disparities among older households were wider in the United States than in selected countries from 1998 through 2019, according to GAO's review of households headed by those 55 and older. For example, in 2007, the median, or “typical,” income of high-income older households in the United States was about 12 times greater than that of low-income households, compared to about 6 ...

Do Personality Traits Moderate the Effects of Cohabitation, Separation, and Widowhood on Life Satisfaction? A Longitudinal Test for Germany

The start and end of a romantic relationship are associated with substantial changes in life satisfaction. Yet, whether Big Five personality traits moderate these relationship transition effects is hardly known. Such knowledge helps to understand individual variation in relationship transition effects and provides the possibility to further test the stress and social support explanations of these effects. ...

Political socialization, political gender gaps and the intergenerational transmission of left-right ideology

While left and right are the main terms to distinguish political views in Western Europe, the family socialization of citizens has mainly been studied in terms of partisan preferences rather than identification with these ideological blocks. Therefore, this study investigates the intergenerational transmission of left-right ideological positions in two European multiparty systems. To investigate expectations ...

Politische Sozialisation in der Familie

Maternal mental health and adverse birth outcomes

Recent research in economics emphasizes the role of in utero conditions for the health endowment at birth and in early childhood and for social as well as economic outcomes in later life. This paper analyzes the relation between maternal mental health during pregnancy and birth outcomes of the child. In particular, we analyze the relationship between maternal mental health during pregnancy and the ...

Culture and Institutions: Long-lasting effects of communism on risk and time preferences of individuals in Europe

Even three decades after the end of communism in Eastern Europe, there are still observable differences in financial risk and time preferences compared to Western Europe. Using data from two large-scale surveys – one including European countries (INTRA) and one for West and East Germany (SOEP) – we show that the causes of these differences are not the same: While differences in loss aversion and patience ...