Further training for the unemployed : what can we learn about dropouts from administrative data?

"One out of five participants of further training programs in Germany drops out of the program. Studies on the employment effects of these measures usually consider the start of a program as the treatment and do not deal with the question if the program has been completed. By contrast, this paper focuses on the distinction between dropping out and completing a program. It first discusses how to identify dropouts in the German Integrated Employment Biographies Sample, which is possible after having corrected measurement error in the registered end of participation. Second, the occurrence of dropouts is studied - how often and when do people drop out and what makes a dropout more likely. Third, the employment prospects of dropouts are analyzed descriptively." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))Integrierte Erwerbsbiografien, Trainingsmaßnahme, arbeitsmarktpolitische Maßnahme, Wirkungsforschung, Abbrecher, Absolventen, Beschäftigungseffekte

Post-Conflict Peacebuilding in Bosnia-Herzegovina

During the summer of 2014, I lived in Sanski Most, Bosnia-Herzegovina, with funding from an International Research and Opportunities Program (IROP) grant from the Hamel Center for Undergraduate Research at the University of New Hampshire (UNH). Through a series of semi-structured interviews and participant observation, my research highlighted the roles of truth, memory, and justice in rebuilding a post-conflict society in Bosnia-Herzegovina―essentially, on peacebuilding since the war ended in 1995. The Bosnian War stands as the worst genocide since the Holocaust, with 350,000 casualties and over 100,000 dead―80% of whom were Muslim Bosniaks, targets of an ethnic cleansing campaign by neighboring Serbia. Of the interviews I conducted, the majority of respondents believe that truth is the most important part of rebuilding Bosnia-Herzegovina, which includes reconciliation and coming up with one common history of what happened during the war. I worked with my UNH mentor, Dr. Mary Malone (political science), and my foreign mentor, Vahidin Omanović (co-director of the Center for Peacebuilding in Sanski Most), to develop interview questions and use my research as the basis for my undergraduate honors thesis. I hope my work on peacebuilding in Bosnia-Herzegovina will be a useful addition to the field of studies in an area of the world that is often overlooked by Western media

Do reported end dates of treatments matter for evaluation results? : an investigation based on the German integrated employment biographies sample

"The paper investigates the measurement error in end dates of further training programs in the German Integrated Employment Biographies Sample (IEBS) to gain insights on how measurement error in end dates of treatments affects evaluation results and on how to deal with this problem in future studies using the IEBS. Error-proneness of end dates in the IEBS is discussed, correction procedures are introduced and their influence on estimated employment effects is analyzed using basic descriptive analysis, propensity score snatching and a descriptive duration model. Though there is considerable measurement error in the end dates that can be corrected, the effect on evaluation results is modest, because for evaluation end dates are relevant only through indirect channels. The impact on causal effects based on matching is highest during the lock-in period and for long programs. The advice for future users of the IEBS is to decide depending on their evaluation design and goal if an explicit correction of end dates is necessary. In case an explicit correction is dispensable, it seems still important to take care that program spells are not given priority to employment spells in case of conflict." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))Integrierte Erwerbsbiografien, Datenerfassung, Fehler - Auswirkungen, Trainingsmaßnahme, Weiterbildung, arbeitsmarktpolitische Maßnahme - Effizienz, Wirkungsforschung, Forschungsergebnis, Beschäftigungseffekte

Which Program for Whom? Evidence on the Comparative Effectiveness of Public Sponsored Training Programs in Germany

We use a new and exceptionally rich administrative data set for Germany to evaluate the employment effects of a variety of public sponsored training programs in the early 2000s. Building on the work of Sianesi (2003, 2004), we employ propensity score matching methods in a dynamic, multiple treatment framework in order to address program heterogeneity and dynamic selection into programs. Our results suggest that in West Germany both short-term and medium-term programs show considerable employment effects for certain population subgroups but in some cases the effects are zero in the medium run. Short-term programs are surprisingly effective when compared to the traditional and more expensive longer-term programs. With a few exceptions, we find little evidence for significant positive treatment effects in East Germany. There is some evidence that the employment effects decline for older workers and for low? skilled workers. --evaluation,multiple treatments,dynamic treatment effects,local linear matching,active labor market programs,administrative data

Déjà vu? Short-term training in Germany 1980-1992 and 2000-2003

"Short-term training has recently become the largest active labor market program in Germany regarding the number of participants. Little is known on the effectiveness of different types of short-term training and on their long-run effects. This paper estimates the effects of short-term training programs in West Germany starting in the time period 1980 to 1992 and 2000 to 2003 regarding the two outcomes employment and participation in longer training programs. We find that short-term training shows mostly persistently positive and often significant employment effects. Short-term training focusing on testing and monitoring search effort shows slightly smaller effects compared to the pure training variant. The lock-in periods lasted longer in the 1980s and 1990s compared to the early 2000s. Short-term training results in higher future participation in longer training programs and this effect was much stronger for the earlier time period." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))Trainingsmaßnahme - Auswirkungen, Beschäftigungseffekte, Qualifizierungsmaßnahme, Bildungsbeteiligung, Teilnehmer, Arbeitslose, berufliche Reintegration, Integrierte Erwerbsbiografien, Altersstruktur, Migranten, Geschlechterverteilung, Familienstand, Westdeutschland, Bundesrepublik Deutschland

Déjà Vu? Short-Term Training in Germany 1980–1992 and 2000–2003

Short-term training has recently become the largest active labor market program in Germany regarding the number of participants. Little is known on the effectiveness of different types of short-term training and on their long-run effects. This paper estimates the effects of short-term training programs in West Germany starting in the time period 1980 to 1992 and 2000 to 2003 regarding the two outcomes employment and participation in longer training programs. We find that short-term training shows mostly persistently positive and often significant employment effects. Short-term training focusing on testing and monitoring search effort shows slightly smaller effects compared to the pure training variant. The lock-in periods lasted longer in the 1980s and 1990s compared to the early 2000s. Short-term training results in higher future participation in longer training programs and this effect was much stronger for the earlier time period.administrative data, future training participation, employment effects, short-term training, active labor market programs

Déjà vu? Short-term training in Germany 1980-1992 and 2000-2003

"Short-term training has recently become the largest active labor market program in Germany regarding the number of participants. Little is known on the effectiveness of different types of short-term training and on their long-run effects. This paper estimates the effects of short-term training programs in West Germany starting in the time period 1980 to 1992 and 2000 to 2003 regarding the two outcomes employment and participation in longer training programs. We find that short-term training shows mostly persistently positive and often significant employment effects. Short-term training focusing on testing and monitoring search effort shows slightly smaller effects compared to the pure training variant. The lock-in periods lasted longer in the 1980s and 1990s compared to the early 2000s. Short-term training results in higher future participation in longer training programs and this effect was much stronger for the earlier time period." (author's abstract)Gemessen an der Zahl der Teilnehmer haben sich kurzzeitige Trainingsmaßnahmen zum wichtigsten Instrument aktiver Arbeitsmarktpolitik entwickelt. Über die Effizienz unterschiedlicher Formen von Trainingsmaßnahmen und über ihre langfristigen Auswirkungen ist jedoch wenig bekannt. In dem Beitrag werden die Auswirkungen kurzzeitiger Trainingsmaßnahmen in Westdeutschland im Zeitraum von 1980 bis 1992 und im Zeitraum 2000 bis 2003 hinsichtlich der beiden Ergebnisse Erwerbstätigkeit und Teilnahme an Langzeit-Trainingsmaßnahmen geschätzt. Es werden meist persistente positive und häufig signifikante Beschäftigungseffekte kurzzeitiger Trainingsmaßnahmen nachgewiesen. Trainingsmaßnahmen, die einen Schwerpunkt auf Kontrolle des Suchaufwandes legen, zeigen im Vergleich mit reinen Trainingsprogrammen geringfügig geringere Effekte. Die Dauer der Lock-In-Perioden war in den 1980er Jahren und in den 1990er Jahren länger als zu Anfang des 21. Jahrhunderts. Kurzzeitige Trainingsmaßnahmen führen zu einer häufigeren Teilnahme an Langzeit-Trainingsmaßnahmen, wobei diese Auswirkung im früheren Zeitraum stärker ausgeprägt ist. (IAB