Contents of SOEPcore

The SOEP started in 1984 as a longitudinal survey of private households in the Federal Republic of Germany. The central aim then and now is to collect representative micro-data to measure stability and change in living conditions by following a micro-economic approach enriched with variables from sociology and political science (influenced by the “Social Indicator” movement). Therefore the central survey instruments are a household questionnaire, which is responded by the head of a household and an individual questionnaire, which each household member is intended to answer. Furthermore beginning with 1997, there are wave-specific $LELA files (Lebenslauf - engl. life course) containing the biography information as collected in the respective year.

Life History

The SOEP questionnaires are designed in such a way that people in a SOEP household can be analysed from birth to adulthood. In addition to the Youth Questionnaire, which was conducted for the first time in 2000/01, a series of questionnaires for certain cohorts of children living in SOEP households has been introduced since 2003. These are filled in every year since their year of introduction by mothers (in exceptional cases by fathers) with children of the appropriate age. In 2003 a questionnaire was developed for the mothers of newborn children (0-1 years) Mother-Child Questionnaire A (Age 0-1). The following instruments were developed in such a way that this starting cohort (born 2002/ 2003) can be followed up in its development and analysed longitudinally. This was followed in 2005 by a questionnaire for the mothers of 2-3-year-old children Mother-Child Questionnaire B (Age 2-3) and in 2008 by a questionnaire for 5-6-year-olds Mother-Child Questionnaire C (Age 5-6). In 2010, the questionnaire for 7-8-year-old children Parents Questionnaire D (Age 7-8), completed by both mothers and fathers, was launched. In 2012, the questionnaire for 9-10-year-old children Mother-Child Questionnaire E (Age 9-10) was the last questionnaire to be answered by the mothers. This was followed by two youth instruments in which the children, aged 12 Pupils Questionnaire and 14 Early Youth Questionnaire respectively, answered questions about their own life situation for the first time. These were introduced in 2014 and 2016 respectively, so that in 2018 the first cohort went through the complete battery of age-specific instruments for the first time and then, as an adult, will answer annually thematically changing topics of the long-term SOEP study. As soon as the age of 18 is reached, each person in a SOEP household receives the Individual Questionnaire, the head of the household additionally receives the Household Questionnaire. As soon as a person dies, regardless of whether this person is part of a SOEP household, the Deceased Persons Questionnaire is handed over to the person providing the information.

SOEP Topics

A rather stable set of core questions is asked every year covering the most essential areas of interest of the SOEP:

Attitudes, Values and Personality

The character of a person offers a variety of analysis possibilities. Information about the personality of the respondents, their political orientation, concerns, satisfaction, willingness to take risks and much more can be found in the “Attitudes, Values, and Personality” section.

Demography and Population

In this topic you find various information about the birth dates, no matter if interviewer, children, siblings or parents. Furthermore, there is data on places and history of births in households. The household sizes and relationships between the different persons in a household are also listed, as are the sexes of all persons involved.

Education and Qualification

Education is one of the cornerstones of our society today, and the information that can be obtained through the SOEP is numerous. Whether school achievement, vocational training or academic success in this section is everything about the education of people. The school history, reasons for lack of further training, educational goals and so on. Furthermore, basic skills of children can be found here to, whether they are able to speak in whole sentences or use scissors, for example.

Family and Social Networks

As a household study, the SOEP determines rich information about family and social contacts and how these relationships change at different stages of life. The whole cycle of life with its wonderful and sad facets and a wide range of information is shown in this section: Pregnancy - birth - parenthood - kinship - circle of friends - marriage - divorce - death. And of course many more data can be found here.

Home, Amenities and Contributions of Private HH

In this section you will find information about the household and everything that has to do with everyday life. What kind of home do you live in? Are you an owner or a tenant? Which expenses do you have on things like personal hygiene, the car or holidays? Who’s taking care of the kids? All this and much more information about living, its costs or the living environment can be seen here.

Health and Care

On the subject of health, numerous personal data such as the number of doctoral visits and habits like sport or alcohol consumption are recorded. There are also information on health insurance, health status and grip strength. However, health information from other people such as children or deceased persons are also displayed.

Integration, Migration, Transnationalization

Migration and establishment processes are changing society. With its large number of migration samples and specific migration questions, the SOEP can cover these research topics comprehensively. The area “Integration, Migration, Transnationalization” offers you analysis possibilities on migration history, discrimination, interethnic contacts, education, cultural integration, transnational relations, identification with Germany and the intention to stay.

Income, Taxes and Social Security

Income and finances are an essential part of our everyday life. How much money is earned and how much is spent. Child benefit, pensions, inheritance or salary, but also taxes and debts belong to this topic. No less interesting is the information on other assets such as real estate or property, plant and equipment.

Survey Methodology

In the “Survey Methodology” section you will find many relevant variables on imputation, weighting, field work in SOEP core, identifiers, the interviewers’ working methods,survey methods and also information about our respondents’ exit from the survey.

Time Use and Environmental Behavior

Time is a valuable resource for every human being. Information on how a person plans their time, what obligations they have at what time and how they spend their free time can be found in the “Time Use and Environmental Behavior” section. This section also provides comprehensive information on environmental awareness. Which transport infrastructure is used, which energy resources are used to what extent and what is the position on the subject of renewable energies?

Work and Employment

Information about the topic profession can be found in this section. From the very first job and further training, to job changes and parenthood, to part-time jobs and unemployment. However, not only objective information such as hours of work, but also perceptions of the working environment and feelings about work are shown.

SOEP Questionnaires

Household Questionnaire

Availability: Since 1984

Respondent: Head of household

Stable content

The household questionnaire has been a standard instrument since the beginning of the SOEP. Because the SOEP has a panel character, important questions have to be answered each year anew by the respondents. In order to enable analyses over time, the household questionnaire therefore has a large number of question modules which are asked every year. The following question modules are part of the core program of the household questionnaire.

Topics	Module	No. Vars	Variables
Household, Amenities and Contribution of private Households
	Change of living situation	3	hlf0523 & hlf0106 & hlf0107
	Neighbourhood	1	hlf0153
	House type	4	hlf0154 & hlf0016 & hlf0155 & hlf0596
	Size and condition of the house	4	hlf0018 & hlf0019 & hlf0071 & hcf0011
	Apartment equipment	13	hlf0023 - hlf0037 & hlf0529 - hlf0531
	Apartment status	4	hlf0001 & hlf0006 & hlf0007 & hlf0009 & hlf0015
	Loans, mortgages, building-society loans	2	hlf0087 & hlf0088
	Hereditary lease interest	2	hlf0597 & hlf0598
	Modernization costs	2	hlf0599 & hlf0600
	Owner costs	2	hlf0601 - hlf0605 & `hlf0090 & hlf0084
	Photovoltaic and solar thermal system	6	hlf0532 & hlf0535 - hlf0539
	Owner burden	1	hlf0606
	Social housing/leased flat at a reduced rate	2	hcf0007 & hlf0073
	Apartment owner	1	hlf0013
	Rental and ancillary costs	9	hlf0069 & hlf0074 & hlf0078 & hlf0079 & hlf0081 & hlf0082 & hlf0607 & hlf0608 & hlf0610
	Tenant burden	1	hlf0611
	Cleaning or household assistance	2	hlf0261 & hlf0262
	Persons in need of care	22	hlf0291 & hlf0631 hlf0292 & hlf0300 - hlf0304 & hlf0315 & hlf0317 & hlf0319 - hlf0322 & hlf0331 & hlf0332 & hlf0369 & hlf0370 & hlf0446 - hlf0448 & hlf0595
	Name and birth of children	1	hlk0044
	School attendance for child	2	ks_gen & ks_spe
	Caring Situation for child	6	ks_asc_r & kc_relaz & kc_frdn & kc_paid & kc_mindr & kc_none
Income, Taxes and Social Security
	Income and expenses from rental/lease	7	hlc0007 - hlc0009 & hlc0111 & hlc0112 & hlc0176 & hlc0177
	Repayments for loans	2	hlc0113 & hlc0114
	Credit burden	1	hlc0115
	Inheritance, present, lottery prize	2	hlc0178 - hlc0183
	Investments	14	hlc0104 - hlc0108 & hlc0093 - hlc0098 & hlc0013 & hlc0014 - hlc0184
	Income/expanses household	43	hlc0005 & hlc0006 & hlc0039 & hlc0041 - hlc0047 & hlc0049 - hlc0055 - hlc0057 & hlc0059 & hlc0061 - hlc0065 & hlc0067 & hlc0068 & hlc0070 & hlc0071 & hlc0077 - hlc0085 & hlc0090 & hlc0121 - hlc0125
	Saving	3	hlc0172 - hlc0174

Download Stable Content Household (csv)

Replication Calendar Household Questionnaire

Besides the topics that are asked every year in the household questionnaire, there are some topics modules that are collected irregularly. Many questions do not have to be asked every year as short-term changes are unlikely. In order to be able to react to current social changes, new topics on the household questionnaire are added, which are not surveyed every year and are therefore not part of the standard questions of the household questionnaire. You can find a selection of irregular but recurring topics in the replication calendar:

Topics	Module	Replication	No. Vars	Variables
Home, Amenities and Contributions of private households
	Participation (financial reasons)	2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2011, 2013, 2015	24	hlf0174– hlf0175 & hlf0439– hlf0444 & hlf0178– hlf195
	Material deprivation	2016	24	hlf0178-hlf0181 & hlf0186-hlf0195 & hlf0613 - hlf0622
	Household equipment since last year	1998, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010	32	hlf0163-hlf0167, hlf0209, hlf0212, hlf0214-hlf0215, hlf0217-hlf0218, hlf0159, hlf0223, hlf0228-hlf0229, hlf0231, hlc0116-hlc0118, hlf0233, hlf0236-hlf0237, hlf0169-hlf0170, hlf0239-hlf0242, hlf0244-hlf0245, hlf0247-hlf0248
	Amount of Books in household	2001, 2006, 2011, 2016	1	hlf0197
	Pets	1996, 2006, 2011, 2016	7	hlf0254-hlf0259, hlf0196
	Reasons for Moving and Comparison	1985-2013, 2015	27	hlf0109-hlf0132, hlf0524-hlf0526
	Second Residence	2011,2016	3	hlf0156-hlf0158
	Living Environment	1986, 1994, 1999, 2004, 2009, 2014	22	hlf0135-hlf0152, hlj0004, hld0001-hld0003
	Lunch, School	1997, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2011, 2013, 2015	1	ks_lunch
	Sponsors and Costs, School	1987, 1995, 1997, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2011, Mig 2013	7	kd_publ, kd_indep, kd_priv, kd_comp, kd_comm, ks_amtp, ks_cost
	Lunch, Childcare	1997, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2011, 2013, 2015	1	kd_lunch
	Sponsors and Costs, Childcare	2011, 2013, 2015	7	kd_publ, kd_indep, kd_priv, kd_comp, kd_comm, kc_amtp, kc_cost
	Rely on care times	2002	1	kd_rely
	Leisure Activities and Costs, Children	2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016	19	ka06_spo, ka06_mus, ka06_art, ka06_oth, ka06_non, ka16_ssp, ka16_smu, ka16_sar, ka16_sth, ka16_sot, ka16_spo, ka16_mus, ka16_art, ka16_org, ka16_yth, ka16_ctr, ka16_non, kk_amtp, kk_cost
	Independent Income of The Children	2016
	Price Comparison Apartment for Rent	1984-2014	1	hlf0094
Health and Care
	Satisfaction With Availability Of Care	2002	1	hlf0318
Income, Taxes and Social Security
	Saving	2010,2016	7	hlc0024-hlc0030
	Expenditures on Food	1998, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2016	2	hlf0435-hlf0436
	Alimony	2010	4	hlc0091-hlc0092, hld0004-hld0005
	Consumption Module	2010	122	hlf0163-hlf0172, hlf0209-hlf0252, hlf0159, hlc0166-hlc0168, hlf0371-hlf0434
	Good/Low Income	1992, 1997, 2007	4	hcc0005-hcc0010
Time Use and Environmental Behaviour
	Traffic and Energy	1998, 2003, 2015	124	hlf0540-hlf0591, hli0005, hli0077-hld0142

Download Replication Household (csv)

Individual Questionnaire

Availability: Since 1984

Respondent: Persons over 18 years in the household

Stable content

The individual questionnaire has been a standard instrument since the beginning of the SOEP. Because the SOEP has a panel character, important questions have to be answered each year anew by the respondents. In order to enable analyses over time, the individual questionnaire therefore has a large number of question modules which are asked every year. The following question modules are part of the core program of the individual questionnaire.

Topics	Module	No. Vars	Variables
Attitudes, Values and Personality
	Satisfaction with various aspects	11	plh0171 - plh0181
	Mood	4	plh0184- plh0187
	Flourishing	1	plh0334
	Risk Aversion	1	plh0204
	Political orientation	4	plh0007 , plh0011 - plh0013
	Worries	13	plh0032 , plh0033 , plh0035 - plh0038 , plh0040 , plh0042 , plh0043 , plh0046 , plh0047 , plh0335 , plh0336
	Life satisfaction	1	plh0182
Demography and Population
	Origin	6	plj0014 , plj0022 - plj0025, plj0175
Education and Qualification
	Apprenticeship	1	plg0012 - plg0015 , plg0264 , plg0265
	Acquired qualification	12	plg0072- plg0079 , plg0284 , plg0268, p_degree, p_field
	Advanced training	3	plg0269 - plg0271
Family and Social Networks
	Family situation	4	pld0131 - pld0133, plk0001
	Family changes	42	pld0012 - pld0014 , pld0038 - pld0040 , pld0134 - pld0156 , pld0158 - pld0171
Helath and Care
	State of health	1	ple0008
	Disability or severe disability	2	ple0040- ple0041
	Visits to the doctor	2	ple0072 , ple0073
	Hospital stays	3	ple0053 , ple0055 , ple0056
	Sickness notifications to employer	10	ple0044 , ple0046 , ple0048 - ple0052 , ple0174 , ple0175 , plb0024
	Health insurance	4	ple0097 , ple0099 , ple0104 , ple0160
Income, Taxes and Social Security
	Employment earnings and collective wage agreements	6	plc0013 , plc0014 , plc0506 - plc0509
	Additional questions for employees	13	plc0042 - plc0054
	Additional questions for retirees/pensioners	20	plc0223 , plc0236 , plc0238 , plc0240 , plc0242 , plc0243 , plc0245 , plc0247 , plc0249 , plc0251 , plc0278 , plc0279 , plc0281 , plc0283 , plc0285 , plc0286 , plc0288 , plc0290 , plc0516 , plc0517
	Transfer payments	21	plj0131 - plj0151
Time Use and Environmental Behaviour
	Calendar	12	pab0001- pab0008, pab010- pab0013
	Use of time	60	pli0001- pli0060
Work and Employment / Income, Taxes and Social Security
	Secondary occupations	9	plb0392 - plb0396 , plb0573 , plc0062 , p_isco88n , p_isco08n
	Income	62	plc0015 - plc0017 , plc0064 , plc0065 , plc0073 - plc0075 , plc0116 , plc0117 , plc0126 , plc0130 - plc0132 , plc0135 - plc0139 , plc0152 - plc0155 , plc0168 - plc0171 , plc0177 , plc0178 , plc0181 - plc0184 , plc0188 - plc0190 , plc0198 , plc0202 - plc0205 , plc0232 - plc0235 , plc0273 - plc0276 , plc0488 - plc0490 , plc0494 - plc0496 , plc0513 , plc0514, plc0515 , plb0471 , plb0474, plb0477
Work and Employment
	Work, last 7 days	1	plb0018
	Maternity/ Parental leave	1	plb0019 , plb0020
	Care period (Pflegezeit)	1	plb0020
	Registered unemployed	1	plb0021
	Quitting a profession	4	plb0282 , plb0298- plb0305 , plc0040, plc0041
	Employment status	1	plb0022
	Start of the job	9	plb0417 - plb0424 , plb0240
	Change of job	9	plb0031 - plb0034 , plb0478- plb0480 , plb0284 , plb0295
	Job search	2	plb0362 , plb0358
	Practised profession	4	plb0072 , plb0073 , p_nace , p_isco08
	Current employment	13	plb0035 - plb0037 , plb0040 , plb0041 , plb0049 , plb0058 , plb0063- plb0065 , plb0568 , plb0570 , plb0586
	Working hours	10	plb0180 - plb0182, plb0185 - plb0188 , plb0241 , plb0209 , plb0210
	Overtime	10	plb0193 - plb0198 , plb0483 , plb0484 , plb0220 , plb0605

Download Stable Content Individual (csv)

Replication Calendar Individual Questionnaire

Besides the topics that are asked every year in the individual questionnaire, there are some topics modules that are collected irregularly. Many questions do not have to be asked every year as short-term changes are unlikely. In order to be able to react to current social changes, new topics on the individual questionnaire are added, which are not surveyed every year and are therefore not part of the standard questions of the individual questionnaire. You can find a selection of irregular but recurring topics in the replication calendar:

Topics	Module	Replication	No. Vars	Variables
Attitudes, Values and Personality
	Well-being	1990 (only Ost), 1994, 1999	13	plh0091 - plh0103
	Optimism	1994, 2005, 2009, 2014	1	plh0244
	Religious Affiliation	1990, 1997, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015	1	plh0258
	Organisational and community membership	1985, 1989, 1993, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015	5	plh0263 -plh0267
	Personality traits (Big Five)	2005, 2009, 2013, 2017	16	plh0212 -plh0226, plh0255
	Anomy	1992,1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2008, 2013	4	plh0188-plh0191
	Depressive Traits	2016	4	plh0339 – plh0342
	Goals in life (Kluckhohn)	1990, 1992, 1995, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016	9	plh0105 – plh0112, plh0343
	Money and account balance	2016	3	plh0344 – plh0346
	Control beliefs	2005, 2010, 2015	10	plh0247 – plh0252 , plh0245 , plh0246
	Reciprocity	2005, 2010, 2015	11	plh0206 - plh0211, plh0142- plh0146
	Trust and fairness	2003, 2008, 2013	8	plh0192 - plh0196 , pld0043 - pld0045
	Narcissism	2018
	Loneliness	2013,2017	3	plh0269 - plh0271
	Impulsivity, patience	2008,2013	3	plh0204 , plh0253 , plh0254
	Risk Aversion (long)	2004,2009	6	plh0197 - plh0202
	Lottery question	2004,2009	1	plh0203
	Policy objectives (Inglehart Index)	1984, 1985, 1986, 1996, 2006, 2016	4	plh0054, plh0056, plh0058, plh0061
	Attitudes towards refugees	2016	11	plj0433 – plj0443
	Bundestag election	2014	1	plh0333
	Political Tendency, Left-Right	2005, 2009, 2014	1	plh0004
	Social responsibility	1987, 1992, 1997, 2002, 2017	11	plh0016 – plh0026
	Donations	2010,2015	2	plh0129 , plh0130
	Donation of blood	2010,2015	3	plh0131 - plh0133
	Donations of goods	2010	8	plj0108 - plj0115
	10000 Euro Question	2010,2017	3	plh0134- plh0136
	Income justice, general	2005	12	plh0116- plh0127
Family and Social Networks
	Family Network	1991, 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011, 2016	43	pld0020 - pld0036 & pld0107 - pld0118 & plj0117 - plj0130
	Networks, trusted person	1991, 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011, 2016	29	pld0089 - pld0088 & plf0049 - plf0050
	Networks, sociodemography	2006, 2011, 2016	18	pld0089 - pld0106
	2003, 2008, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2018		1	pld0047
	LGBT Status	2016	1	pld0298
	Gender Attitudes	2018	8
Health and Care
	Ilness	2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017	14	ple0011 – ple0024
	Stress and exhaustion (SF-12)	2002 - 2018 (every two years)	10	ple0026 – ple0036
	Disabilities in everyday life (SF-12)	1997-2002, 2004-2018 (every two years)	2	ple0004 – ple0005
	Height and Weight	2002 - 2018 (every two years)	2	ple0006 – ple0007
	Chronicall Illness	1984-1989, 1991, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018	1	ple0036
	Health restrictions	2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2017	2	ple0009 & ple0162
	Health insurance debts	2017	1
	Smoking	1998, 1999, 2001, 2002-2018 (every two years)	6	ple0081 & ple0086 - ple0088 & ple0176
	Alcoholic beverages	2006, 2008, 2010, 2016	2	ple0177 – ple0178
	Nutritional awareness	2004-2016 (every two years)	4	ple0179 – ple0182
	Assisted or curative care	1999-2011	1	ple0121
	Additional private insurance	2011-2014, 2016, 2018	8	ple0127 – ple0134
	Private supplementary care insurance	2016,2018	3	ple0183 – ple0185
	Insurance status	2018
	Type of disability	2001, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2015	2	ple0140 – ple0141
	Individual health service	2016,2018	1	ple0186
Income,Taxes and Social Security
	Labour income, hourly wage	2017
	Earnings Work October 2014	2015	2	plb0584 , plb0585
	Balance sheet of assets	1988, 2002, 2007, 2012, 2017	67	plc0315 - plc0319 , plc0328 - plc0374 , plc0411 - plc0425
	Inheritance	2001,2017	33	plc0375 - plc0407
	Transfer payments, income	2009, 2010, 2011	21	plj0152- plj0172
	Social security	1987, 1992, 1997, 2007, 2012, 2017	7	plc0008, plc0009, plc0111- plc0115
	Entitlements, statutory	2013	4	plc0432- plc0435
	Riester	2004, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2017	3	plc0430 , plc0431 , plc0313
	Riester payments	2013	3	plc0437 - plc0439
	Entitlements, company	2013	5	plc0441 - plc0445
Immigration, Migration, Transnationalization
	Integration Indicators	1997, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018	2	plj0078 & plj0080
	Native tongue	2007-2011, 2013, 2015, 2017	8	plj0009 & plj0691 - plj0693 & plj0071 - plj0073 & plj0077
	Contact, at home and abroad	1997-2017 (every two yeras)	4	plj0060 - plj0063
	Citizenship Application	1998-2018 (every two years)	1	plj0021
	Residence status, citizenship	2018	2
	Intention to stay	1997-2011, 2013, 2015, 2017	4	plj0085 - plj0088
	Disadvantages due to origin (short)	1997-2011, 2013, 2017	1	plj0048
	Disadvantages due to origin (area)	2015	15	plj0048 & plj0327 - plj0340
	Linguistic usage, newspaper	1996-2012 (every two years)	1	plj0070
	Linguistic usage, media	2014, 2016, 2018	1	plj0226
	Visit country of origin last 2 years	1996-2018 (every two years)	2	plj0322 & plj0323
	Sense of home	1996-2014 (every two years)	2	plj0083 & plj0340
	Regional attachment	2009,2014	3	plj0343 - plj0345
	Contacts and thoughts abroad	2009,2014	6	plj0104 & plj0105 & plj0089 - plj0092
	Circle of Friends, Share of Migrants	2013,2018	1	plj0191
	Foreign language skills	2013	1	plm0135 & plj0187
Time Use and Environmental Behaviour
	Leisure activities (short)	1984-1986, 1988, 1992, 1994,1996, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2015, 2017	9	pli0090 – pli0098
	Leisure activities (long)	1990, 1995, 1998, 2003, 2008, 2013	19	pli0079 – pli0092 & pli0096 – pli0098 & pli0165 & pli0168
	Computer usage	1997,1999, 2000, 2001	8	pli0066 – pli0073
	Traffic behavior	1993,1998, 2003	77	pli0101 – pli0160 & plb0016 & plb0145 & plb0147 – pli0156 & plb0158 & plb0159 & plb0175 & plb0591
Work and Employment
	Illegal Employment	2015,2016	2	plb0571 , plb0572
	Intensity of work	2015, 2016, 2017	2	plb0593, plb0594
	Work equipment	2015, 2016, 2017	6	plb0595- plb0600
	Work breaks	2015, 2016, 2017	3	plb0601- plb0603
	Employment October 2014	2015	1	plb0574
	Work breaks October 2014	2015	4	plb0575 - plb0578
	Working time October 2014	2015	3	plb0579 - plb0581
	Overtime October 2014	2015	2	plb0582 , plb0583
	Lifelong learning	2014	1	plg0266
	Continuing education, initiative	1989, 1993, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2014	2	plg0273 , plg0274
	Further training, financing	1989, 1993, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2014, 2015, 2017	7	plg0285 - plg0291
	Further education, organizer		1
	Continuing education, reasons for failure	1989, 1993, 2000, 2004, 2014	5	plg0277 – plg0281
	Further education, course details and motives	1989, 1993, 2000, 2004, 2008	60	plg0108 - plg0122 , plg0129 - plg0149 , plg0152 , plg0154 , plg0164 , plg0165 , plg0169 , plg0171 , plg0172 , plg0174 - plg0177 , plg0182 - plg0186
	Benefits from employer, additional benefits	2008, 2010, 2012, 2014-2017	14	plc0026 - plc0039
	Benefits from employer, company car	2016,2017	1	plc0532
	Work time regulation	2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014-2017	1	plb0211
	Standby duty	2011, 2014-2017	4	plb0212- plb0215
	Work time recording
	Overtime, compensation	1984-2014	1	plb0195
	Start of working hours	2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2015, 2017	3	plb0180- plb0182
	Evening - Weekend work	2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017	4	plb0216- plb0219
	Contract to Provide Specific Services (Werkvertrag)	2013,2015	1	plb0482
	Wage Tax Classification	1991, 1993, 2004, 2016	1	plc0091
	Exercised profession, training	1984-2014, 2016	4	plb0076- plb0079
	Commuter Module	1991-2013, 2015, 2017	6	plb0589- plb0592, plb0158, plb0159
	Vacation claim	2000, 2005, 2010	8	plb0269- plb0276
	Work from home	1997, 1999, 2002, 2009, 2014	3	plb0095- plb0097
	Short-time allowance (Kurzarbeitergeld)	1984-2001, 2003-2005, 2010, 2011,	2	plc0057 , plc0058
	Performance evaluation in the company	2004, 2008, 2011, 2016	5	plb0098- plb0102
	Leading position	2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017	3	plb0067- plb0069
	Wage justice	2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017	6	plh0138- plh0141 , plh0337 , plh0338
	Workload (Effort-Reward-Inbalance)	2001, 2006, 2011, 2016	26	plb0112- plb0137
	Professional expectations, long	1985, 1987, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2005, 2009, 2013	11	plb0432- plb0442
	Professional expectations, short	2015	5	plb0433, plb0437, plb0440, plb0588
	Employee organization (Betriebsrat)	2001,2006, 2011, 2016	1	plb0050
	Occupational qualification, use	1985-2007, 2009	1	plb0357
	Self-employment, reasons	2010,2015	6	plb0333- plb0338
	Postcode of the place of work	2016
	Occupational expectations, non-workers	1999, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015	3	plb0427- plb0429
	Job search, preferences	1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017	1	plb0426
	Job search, motives	1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2017	1	plb0111

Download Replication Individual (csv)

Biography Questionnaire

Availability: Since 1987

Respondent: Supplementary, one-time data on the personal questionnaire of all persons aged 18 and over in the HH.

Content:

• Nationality
• Origin
• Childhood
• Parents
• Life course since the age of 15
• Education
• Occupation
• Partnership/ Marriage
• Information on children
• Siblings

Mother-Child Instruments

Topic	Mother-Child A (Age 0-1)	Mother-Child B (Age 2-3)	Mother-Child C (Age 5-6)	Parents D (Age 7-8)	Mother-Child E (Age 9-10)
Pregnancy & Birth	x
Nursing	x	x
Health	x	x	x		x
Height & Weight		x	x
Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scale		x
Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire			x		x
Childcare	x	x	x	x	x
Linguistic Usage		x			x
Temper	x	x
Big 5 Personality Traits		x	x		x
School & Homework					x
Educational Aspirations				x	x
Parenting Goals				x
Styles of Parenting				x
Mother Role/ Parent Role	x			x
Leisure and Activities (with Child)		x	x		x
Friends					x
Pocket Money					x

Mother-Child Questionnaire A (Age 0-1)

Mothers of newborn children primarily answer questions about the course of pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding and the health of the newborn child. It also asks to what extent the mother feels that her life circumstances have changed after the birth of the child, how the care of the child is regulated and how the temperament of the baby (as a precursor of the personality) is perceived by mothers.

Availability: Since 2003

Respondent: Mother in household (child age 0-1)

Content:

• Course of pregnancy
• Childbirth
• Health screening
• Well-being
• Childcare
• Life circumstances

Mother-Child Questionnaire B (Age 2-3)

Mothers of 2-3-year-old children also answer some questions about their child’s health and how long they have been breastfeeding. In addition, the child’s care situation is asked, again the temperament as well as a short scale for recording the personality (agreeableness, extraversion, openness and conscientiousness of the Big Five; McCrae and Costa 1987). In addition, the use of language in the family and activities carried out with the children (e.g. going to the playground, reading or telling stories, visiting other families with children) are recorded. Mothers also assess their children’s adaptive behaviour in the dimensions of communication, everyday skills, social relationships and motor skills. The acquisition is based on a translated version of the Vineland Adpative Behavior Scale, which was reduced to 20 items for the SOEP. This scale thus investigates the stage of development of the infant in everyday life.

Availability: Since 2005

Respondent: Mother in household (child age 2-3)

Content:

• Personality of the child
• Well-being
• Childcare
• Language skills
• Development
• Abilities

Mother-Child Questionnaire C (Age 5-6)

The subsequent age-specific survey is carried out as soon as the children turn six years old in the survey year. Among the topics it resembles the surveys conducted in previous years: health, care situation, a more comprehensive battery of items on the personality (from this age neuroticisum is also collected) and activities that are carried out with the child. In addition, there is the Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), which is a shortened version of the German version of the SDQ to 17 items and is a very frequently used instrument for the mental health of children and young people.

Availability: Since 2008

Respondent: Mother in household (child age 5-6)

Content:

• Personality of the child
• Activities with children
• Well-being
• Childcare

Parents Questionnaire D (Age 7-8)

The questionnaire, which was developed for 7-8-year-old children, is the only age-specific instrument to be completed by both parents, as long as they live together in the same household. In this age range, questions about school attendance (time of school enrolment) and idealistic and realistic educational aspirations become relevant for the first time. However, the focus of this instrument is on the educational goals, parenting styles and the role of both parents. The educational objectives can be differentiated between conformity and autonomy. Educational styles are asked by answering 18 items, which can be divided into six scales: Emotional warmth, inconsistent education, monitoring, negative communication, psychological control, strict control. The items were taken from the pairfam study, as were the 10 items for recording the role of parents. The parental role can be divided into three scales (autonomy, hostile attributes, willingness to make sacrifices).

Availability: Since 2012

Respondent: Partents in household (child age 7-8)

Content:

• Expectations for school achievments
• Expectations of parental educational goals
• Upbringing
• Parental role
• Childcare

Mother-Child Questionnaire E (Age 9-10)

In addition to the items on health and the care situation recorded in almost all age groups, 9-10-year-old children are asked for more detailed information on the school situation. Here, too, the idealistic and realistic educational aspirations of the mothers for their child are recorded, but also the last grades of the three main subjects, as well as the child’s homework supervision and school motivation. Since friends and leisure activities are gaining in importance in this age group, questions are also asked on these topics. Whether and how much pocket money the child receives will be asked for the first time in this age group.

Availability: Since 2012

Respondent: Mother in household (child age 9-10)

Content:

• Expectations (school achievments, parental educational goals)
• Education
• parental commitment
• Leisure activities for children
• Family environment
• Social behavior child
• Personality Child
• Health Child
• Supervision
• Pocket money

Youth Instruments

Topic	Pupils Questionnaire (Age 11-12)	Early Youth Questionnaire (Age 13-14)	Youth Questionnaire (Age16-17)
Child’s State of Health		x	x
Height & Weight	x	x	x
Life Satisfaction	x	x	x
Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire	x	x
Linguistic Usage	x	x
Big 5 Personality Traits	x	x	x
Willingness to take Risks	x	x	x
Locus of Control		x	x
Trust			x
Time Preference			x
School Attendance & Homework	x	x	x
Parents’ Interest in School Performance	x		x
Educational Aspirations	x	x	x
Cultural Capital	x
Relationship between Family Members	x	x	x
Parentingl Behaviour			x
Importance of personal environment		x	x
Hobbies	x	x	x
Friends	x	x	x
Pocket Money	x	x	x
Saving		x	x
Political Interest		x	x
Housing Situation			x
Jobs and Money			x
Education and Career Plans			x
Future			x
Childhood and Parental Home			x
Attitudes and Opinions			x

Pupils Questionnaire

In the year in which the children turn twelve, they answer questions about their situation for the first time. Here the focus is once again on the school situation: the start and end of school are asked differentiated according to the days of the week, the type of school attended, the number of pupils in the class and how many of them do not come from Germany, whether one feels discriminated against by the teacher and the last grades in math, German and English. It also determines how much time the student spends on homework, where he or she does the homework and who helps him or her with the homework and learning. The children are asked about their idealistic and realistic graduation aspiration. Since friends play an important role as caregivers at this age, they and various family members are asked what role they play in the support and how often there are disputes. Also asked about the number of close friendships and how often the parents interfere in the choice of friends. The educational aspirations of the three best friends and a maximum of three older siblings (if any) are asked. The cultural capital and learning environment of the pupils are assessed on the basis of various questions (e.g. availability of literature, instruments, art at home; a desk and a room for oneself). Furthermore, the type and frequency of leisure activities is again asked. The student answers whether and how much pocket money he or she receives and for the first time gives information about his or her own personality, willingness to take risks and life satisfaction. The use of the language in the family (only German or other languages) and with whom the meals are usually taken is also asked.

Availability: Since 2014

Respondent: 11-12-year-olds in the household

Content:

• Attitude
• Personality
• School (timetable, school-leaving qualification, Engagement)
• Recreational activities
• Social and family surroundings
• Life circumstances

Early Youth Questionnaire

The questionnaire for early youth is largely similar to the questionnaire for pupils in order to provide an appropriate data structure for questions relevant to developmental psychology. Fewer questions are asked about homework and the learning environment, but the question is asked whether the young person is involved in the school (e.g. as class spokesperson or in a working group) and social capital is acquired in this way. The current importance of various family members and friends is asked and, in addition to their own educational aspirations, also that of the three best friends. With regard to parents, the question is asked how long the young person is allowed to travel and stay up alone before school days and what things the 14-year-old has already done without parents (e.g. holidays, going to the doctor, exchanging something in the shop, drinking alcohol, smoking cigarettes). They ask again for the pocket money and also whether the young person has the opportunity to save money. Another new topic in this age group is the interest in politics and the inclination towards a certain party.

Availability: Since 2015

Respondent: 13-14-year-olds in the household

Content:

• self-perception
• School (timetable, school-leaving qualification, Engagement)
• Recreational activities
• Friends
• Siblings
• Parents
• Pocket money
• Party preferences
• Self-Perception
• Willingness to take risks
• Life satisfaction
• Attitudes/Opinions
• Future

Youth Questionnaire

In the SOEP, people who turn 17 in the corresponding survey year are considered adult respondents. Like other first-time adult participants, you will thus receive a CV and a individual questionnaire. Since part of the adult biography (such as the employment biography or the relationship biography) does not yet apply to the young participants and other aspects such as the relationship with parents, leisure activities, the school situation or vocational training play a greater role, a youth questionnaire was developed in 2000 which replaces the CV questionnaire in this age group and has been used since then. The content of this questionnaire corresponds in many respects to the adult CV questionnaire, so that the data can be used to supplement the information on parents (if they do not live in the household; data set: BIOPAREN). Health status, personality, willingness to take risks, locus of control, trust, time preference, political preferences, knowledge of German as well as information on the living situation, work situation, training, career plans and educational aspirations are also surveyed. For the period from 2000 to 2005, the youth questionnaire was surveyed in addition to the personal questionnaire. Since 2006, only the youth questionnaire has been recorded for 17-year-olds. Since then, it has been available in a version extended by a few indicators, and instead a test has been used to assess cognitive potential. Based on the I-S-T 2000R (Amthauer et al. 2001) the components analogies, number series and matrices with 20 subtasks each were selected for the SOEP (cf. Solga et al. 2005). With the help of these tasks, the fluid cognitive abilities are to be recorded. This is a strongly biologically determined dimension of cognitive abilities that is not influenced by education and is primarily based on reasoning, processing rate and working memory capacity (Cattell 1971; Horn 1982). Although the format of the test differs from the usual questionnaires in surveys, the willingness of young people to participate is high (Schupp and Hermann 2009).

Availability: Since 2000

Respondent: 16-17 year olds in the household

Content:

• Living
• Relationships
• Leisure and Sport
• School (Graduation, Foreign languages, Engagement)
• Pocket money
• Education
• Career Plans
• Future
• Origin
• Childhood and Parental Home
• Attitudes/Opinions
• Self-Perception
• Life satisfaction
• Party preferences

„Lust auf DJ“ (Denksport und Jugend) Questionnaire

In SOEP 2006, a separate questionnaire with cognitive tests for adolescents was used for the first time: “Lust auf DJ”. In this case, “DJ” stands for “Thinking Sports and Youth (Denksport und Jugend)”, but was also specifically selected to arouse the more common association of “Disc Jockey”. For all interviewees aged 16 - 17 years, the questionnaire “Lust auf DJ” was used and created.

Availability: Since 2007

Respondent: 16-17-year-olds in the household as a supplement to the youth questionnaire

Content:

• Assignment of word pairs
• Complete incomplete equations
• Assign figures

Additional Instruments

„Lücke“ Questionnaire - Re-questioning of the Individual Questionnaire (Summary)

The “Lücke” (english:gap) questionnaire relates to temporary drop outs for which significant missing data from the previous year are collected.

Availability: Since 1987

Respondent: SOEP respondents who are temporarily unavailable.

Content:

All data refer to the previous survey year

• Status of the respondent
• Occupational change
• Receipt of social benefits within the last year
• Completion of education
• Type of educational attainment
• Change of family status

Deceased Persons Questionnaire

For the first time in the main wave of 2009, information should be collected on former SOEP participants who have died since the survey in 2008 or until the time of the survey in 2009. Through the questionnaire “The deceased person”, the SOEP curriculum vitae principle is thus consistently “completed”. The primary aim of the chosen concept is to obtain as much information as possible about the death circumstances of former SOEP participants. However, it also generates information about people who have never participated in the SOEP survey. The information collected in this way about otherwise “unknown” persons, however, can also be used for various analysis purposes on causes of death and the context of death can also be used in the socio-scientific analysis.

Availability: Since 2009

Respondent: SOEP respondents who lost a loved one.

Content:

• Relationship to the deceased
• Deceased part of the survey?
• Domestic environment of the deceased person
• Cause and place of death
• Legacies
• Health condition of the deceased
• Life satisfaction of the deceased
• Influence of loss on one’s own life

Gripping Strength Test

Availability: Since 2008

Respondent: Persons over 17 years in the household

Content:

This test measures the strength a person can exert when gripping. This can be important for assessing the physical condition.

IAB-SOEP-Migrationsstichprobe

Personal Biography Questionnaire (New Respondents)

Availability: Since 2014

Respondent: Persons with a migrant background aged 18 and over in the household

Content:

• Citizenship
• Origin
• Knowledge/Skills before entering
• Migration background
• Migration biography (the way to Germany)
• Current living situation
• Childhood and Parental Home
• Life course since the age of 15
• Education/Degrees
• Family Situation
• Partnership situation before immigration
• Employment (current and past)
• Occupational Change
• Current income
• Education/further training
• Earnings
• Well-being
• Attitudes/Opinions

Individual Questionnaire (Reinterviewed)

Availability: Since 2014

Respondent: Persons with a migrant background aged 18 and over in the household

Content:

Like Individual Questionnaire + the following migration-specific topics:

• Training/further training at home and abroad
• Discrimination/Pursuit/War
• Employment before moving to Germany
• Amount of income in local currency
• Religious community
• Immigration parents and/or grandparents + place

Youth Questionnaire

Availability: Since 2014

Respondent: 16-17 year olds in household with a migration background

Content:

Like Biography Questionnaire + the following migration-specific topics:

• Circle of friends
• Degree at home or abroad
• German lessons as a foreign language
• Training at home or abroad
• Year of the parents’ immigration
• Acquired degree of parents at home or abroad
• Religious community

Household Questionnaire

Availability: Since 2014

Respondent: Head of household

Content:

Like Household Questionnaire + the following migration-specific topics:

• Valuables in Germany or abroad

IAB-BAMF-SOEP-Befragung von Geflüchteten

Personal Biography Questionnaire (New Respondents)

In 2017 (second wave of surveys), the survey instruments used and the respective survey content will come closer to the SOEP standard. In addition to the personal and household questionnaire, age-specific children’s instruments are used. As a rule, mothers of children of specific birth cohorts living in households (2016/2017, 2014, 2011, 2009, 2007) are asked about their educational participation in Germany, as well as information which includes the SOEP standard of the mother-child survey instruments and refugee specific additions, such as educational pathways before fleeing to Germany, language acquisition and mental illness. In addition, with the consent of the parents, specific birth cohorts (2005, 2003 and 2000) of the growing up children/young people in the participating fugitive households themselves are interviewed. The age-specific SOEP standard instruments (students, early youth and youth) also serve as a model here. In addition to specific extensions for the fugitives, the adolescents undergo a test of basic cognitive skills developed by the Institute for Quality Development in Education (IQB). The selection of questions in the personal questionnaire, which is aimed at all adult refugees, should make it possible to trace the course of integration in many areas, also in comparison to other population groups. Thus, topics specific to refugees in the first wave of the survey are updated, such as the current status of the asylum procedure or language course participation. Classic SOEP topics, such as questions about current employment, will be given more scope. Flight-specific innovations that have become established in recent immigrant samples (IAB-SOEP Migration Surveys M1 and M2 from 2013 and 2015), such as the recording of educational qualifications acquired abroad with the help of the CAMCES tool and the question module on the recognition of qualifications acquired abroad, will also be used in the personal questionnaire in 2017.

Availability: Since 2017

Respondent: Refugees over 18 years of age

Content:

• Origin and route to Germany
• Escape/Travel Reasons
• Flight/Travel expenses
• Escape/route
• Accommodation in Germany
• Reasons why Germany as a target country
• Status of the asylum procedure
• Residence permit
• Satisfaction on various aspects
• Intention to stay
• Writing and language skills (mother tongue and foreign language)
• Integration courses in Germany
• Awareness, need and use of support and consulting services
• Employment and income abroad and in Germany
• Life situation before arrival
• Schools, colleges and vocational training abroad and in Germany (+ recognition)
• Curriculum vitae from age 15
• Well-being
• Perception of life
• Attitude towards the future
• Religious community
• party preferences
• Assessment of the current situation in the country of origin
• Attitude and values
• Personality
• Social Networks
• Family situation
• Participation of children in education
• Declaration of consent for register linking