Living Conditions in Regions Undergoing Structural Change

In cooperation with the Federal Institute for Research on Building, Urban Affairs and Spatial Development (BBSR), SOEP data are used to monitor changes in living conditions over time both within and outside the regions undergoing structural change. The basis for this work is the Structural Development Act for Coal-Mining Regions (Strukturstärkungsgesetz Kohleregionen), which entered into force in 2020. Under this act, the BBSR established a Competence Center for Regional Development to provide scientific support for the structural transformation process.

As early as 2021, a supplementary sample in the assisted areas was drawn in cooperation with the BBSR and has been surveyed annually since 2022. Since a considerable number of households have discontinued their participation, the sample has declined substantially in size. Therefore, a new supplementary sample was drawn for the 2026 survey. From the addresses of approximately 10,000 households, around 1,033 households are expected to be interviewed. This will result in a sample size in the regions undergoing structural change that is roughly comparable to that achieved in 2022. As in the SOEP core study, households are interviewed either in person, online, or by paper questionnaire.

The new sample will be integrated into the main survey of the longitudinal study Living in Germany (Leben in Deutschland) and weighted jointly with the SOEP core study. From 2026 onwards, researchers will therefore be able to use data that allow more robust analyses of regional development in the regions undergoing structural change. The data will be made available through the SOEP Research Data Center (FDZ SOEP), together with the data from the SOEP core survey conducted during the same period.