Publications Based on SOEP Data: SOEPlit

Saving Behavior and Housing Wealth Evidence from German Micro Data

Housing property is the most important position in a household’s wealth portfolio. Even though there is strong evidence that house price cycles and saving patterns behave synchronously, the underlying causes remain controversial. The present paper examines if there is a wealth effect of house prices on savings using household-level panel data from the German Socio-Economic Panel for the period 1996-2012. ...

Income Maximization and the Selection and Sorting of International Migrants

Two prominent features of international labor movements are that the more educated are more likely to emigrate (positive selection) and more educated migrants are more likely to settle in destination countries with high rewards to skill (positive sorting). Using data on emigrant stocks by schooling level and source country in OECD destinations, we find that a simple model of income maximization can ...

Increasing Persistent Poverty in Germany

Persistent poverty is increasing in Germany

In Pursuit of Happiness

Among employees in Germany, job satisfaction has been falling since the mid-1980s - an alarming finding. At the Max Planck Institute of Economics in Jena, researchers working with Martin Binder are studying the role that different forms of employment and states of health can play - and the circumstances under which this could be politically relevant.

Born lucky - or just lucky to be born rich? A note

A paper by social psychologists proclaimed that, for UK citizens, it could be shown that being born in the summer half-year was associated with a significantly higher belief in being lucky, compared with being born in the winter half-year. Are we that much determined by nonsocial forces? A test with German data about well-being also yielded a summer high, but smaller and somewhat time-lagged. However, ...

Regional Unemployment and Individual Satisfaction

The Direct and Indirect Impact of Religion on Well-Being in Germany

A European Social Survey (ESS)—based study of Clark and Lelkes on the European level showed a double positive connection between religion and life-satisfaction: not only did a personal involvement have a positive impact, but there was also a regional externality. Even atheists seemed to be happier in areas with many religious people. However, the regional structure of the ESS can be seen as methodologically ...

Employee-friendly labour time: a key element to a sustainable pattern of production and consumption

Whereas the preferences of consumers are a cornerstone of market economies, preferences of employees e.g., regarding the preferred amount of paid labour, usually are not. However, we have strong evidence that differences between aspired and actually worked weekly hours have a serious negative impact on life, job and health satisfaction. This paper investigates the gap between employees’ preferences ...

Health Insurance, Labor Supply, and Job Mobility: A Critical Review of the Literature