Der Einfluss von Persönlichkeitseigenschaften auf die Kooperationsbereitschaft in Umfragen: Befunde der Allgemeinen Bevölkerungsumfrage der Sozialwissenschaften 2004, 2006 und 2008

"Gemäß der Social Isolation Hypothesis ist davon auszugehen, dass sozial isolierte Personen weniger bereit sind an Umfragen teilzunehmen. Auf dieser Grundlage wird argumentiert, dass vor allem subjektiv empfundene soziale Isolation, wie sie im psychologischen Konzept von Einsamkeit berücksichtigt wird, die Teilnahmebereitschaft in Umfragen beeinflusst und dass Einsamkeit von Persönlichkeitseigenschaften abhängt. Es wird die Hypothese abgeleitet, dass Persönlichkeitseigenschaften einen Einfluss auf die Kooperationsbereitschaft in Umfragen ausüben. Anhand der Daten der Allgemeinen Bevölkerungsumfrage der Sozialwissenschaften in den Jahren 2004, 2006 und 2008 wird diese Hypothese empirisch geprüft. Es können negative Effekte von Neurotizismus und Gewissenhaftigkeit sowie positive Effekte von Verträglichkeit und Extraversion auf die Kooperationsbereitschaft festgestellt werden." (Autorenreferat)"According to the Social Isolation Hypothesis socially isolated persons are less willing to participate in surveys. The paper argues that, in particular, subjectively experienced social isolation, as considered in the psychological concept of loneliness, affects the willingness to participate in surveys, and it further argues that loneliness depends upon personality traits. The hypothesis derived from this is that personality traits have an impact on cooperation willingness in surveys. This hypothesis is tested empirically by means of data from the German General Social Survey of the years 2004, 2006, and 2008. Negative effects of neuroticism and conscientiousness and positive effects of agreeableness and extraversion on cooperation willingness can be ascertained." (author's abstract

Sports and Exercise at Different Ages and Leukocyte Telomere Length in Later Life – Data from the Berlin Aging Study II (BASE-II)

Saßenroth D, Meyer A, Salewsky B, et al. Sports and Exercise at Different Ages and Leukocyte Telomere Length in Later Life – Data from the Berlin Aging Study II (BASE-II). PLOS ONE. 2015;10(12): e0142131.Physical activity and sports have repeatedly been reported to be associated with telomere length. We studied the association of different types of sports across different stages of life on relative leukocyte telomere length (rLTL) in advanced age. 815 participants (397 men) from the Berlin Aging Study II aged over 61 years were included in the analysis. rLTL was measured by real time PCR and physical activity was determined retrospectively by questionnaire, assessing type and duration of sports in the past as well as currently. Five separate multiple linear regression models adjusted for various control variables were performed. 67.3% of participants exercised currently, whereas 19.4% performed sports only between the age of 20 and 30. rLTL was higher in subjects who stated to exercise currently (N = 456), and in subjects who engaged in endurance (N = 138) or intensive activity sports (N = 32). Current physical activity was positively associated with rLTL in the risk factor adjusted regression model (beta = 0.26, p < 0.001) and practicing sports for a minimum of 10 years preceding the assessment had a significant effect on rLTL (beta = 0.39, p = 0.011). The highest impact was seen for intensive activity sports (beta = 0.79, p < 0.001) and physical activity since at least 42 years (beta = 0.47, p = 0.001). However, physical activity only between 20 and 30 years of age did not affect rLTL in old age when compared to no sports at all (beta = -0.16, p = 0.21). Physical activity is clearly associated with longer rLTL. The effect is seen with longer periods of physical activity (at least 10 years), with intensive sports activities having the greatest impact on rLTL. Our data suggest that regular physical activity for at least 10 years is necessary to achieve a sustained effect on rLTL

Selectivity Processes in and Weights for the Berlin Aging Study II (BASE-II)

Saßenroth D, Kroh M, Wagner GG. Selectivity Processes in and Weights for the Berlin Aging Study II (BASE-II). SOEP Survey Papers. Vol 229 : Series C, Data Documentations. Berlin: DIW Berlin / SOEP; 2014

Experimental Evidence of the Effect of Monetary Incentives on Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Response : Experiences from the Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP)

Schröder M, Saßenroth D, Körtner JL, Kroh M, Schupp J. Experimental Evidence of the Effect of Monetary Incentives on Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Response : Experiences from the Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP). SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research. Vol 603. Berlin: DIW Berlin; 2013.The paper gives an overview of two experiments implemented in the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) considering the effect of monetary incentives on cross-sectional and longitudinal response propensities. We conclude that the overall effects of monetary incentives on response rates are positive compared to the classic SOEP setting, where a charity lottery ticket is offered as an incentive. In the cross-section, cash incentives are associated with a higher response rate as well as a lower rate of partial unit non-response (PUNR) and fewer noncontacts on the household level. Separate analyses for German and immigrant households show that a monetary incentive has a positive effect on immigrant households' participation in subsequent waves. Regarding the regions where the households are located, the high cash incentive has a positive effect on response rates in provincial towns and rural areas. The incentive treatment decreases the likelihood of PUNR in the longitudinal setting by motivating members of participating households who had refused to participate in previous waves to respond in subsequent waves

The Socio-Economic Module of the Berlin Aging Study II (SOEP-BASE) : Description, Structure, and Questionnaire

Böckenhoff A, Saßenroth D, Kroh M, Siedler T, Eibich P, Wagner GG. The Socio-Economic Module of the Berlin Aging Study II (SOEP-BASE) : Description, Structure, and Questionnaire. SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research. Vol 568. Berlin: DIW Berlin; 2013.The Berlin Aging Study II (BASE-II) is a multidisciplinary study that allows for the investigation of how a multitude of health status factors as well as many other social and economic outcomes interplay. The sample consists of 1,600 participants aged 60 to 80, and 600 participants aged 20 to 35. The socio-economic part of BASE-II, the so called SOEP-BASE, is conducted by the SOEP Group at the DIW Berlin. The surveyed socio-economic variables are fully comparable with the variables of the long running German Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP), which increases the analytical power of BASE-II. The socio-economic data collected on the individual and on the household level are enriched with geo-referenced context data (neighbourhood data) in order to disentangle the interplay between individual, societal and regional determinants on individuals' health status and other outcome variables. Furthermore, as the BASE-II study is based on a convenience sample, the SOEP Group at the DIW provides weights for the BASE-II dataset that correct for selectivity bias

Regression Models for Relative Telomere Length (rLTL).

<p>Note: Standard errors in parentheses. Significance levels</p><p>*** p<0.001</p><p>** p<0.01</p><p>* p<0.5.</p><p>^a Model 1 refers to a regression for Relative Telomere Length (rLTL) including the basic covariates set: age, gender, married, father’s age at birth, years of education, income, body mass index, Alcohol intake above cut-off value by DHS, smoking status.</p><p>^b Model 2 refers to a regression for Relative Telomere Length (rLTL) including the basic covariates set + current physical activity status.</p><p>^c Model 3 refers to a regression for Relative Telomere Length (rLTL) including the basic covariates set +type of physical activity currently practiced.</p><p>^d Model 4 refers to a regression for Relative Telomere Length (rLTL) including the basic covariates set + physical activity status regarding the age 20–30.</p><p>^e Model 5 refers to a regression for Relative Telomere Length (rLTL) including the basic covariates set + the duration since the current physical activity is practiced.</p><p>Regression Models for Relative Telomere Length (rLTL).</p

Standardized values of rLTL by current activity.

<p>Individuals of the currently physically active group showed significantly longer telomeres when compared to the inactive group (inactive group, N = 223; active group, N = 456). Two-tailed <i>p</i>-values were determined using the independent T-test.</p

Descriptive Statistics of the Study Population.

<p>*Total number of observation varies by variables due to item nonresponse.</p><p>Descriptive Statistics of the Study Population.</p