On the links between employment, partnership quality, and the desire to have a first child

We examine the impact of precarious work (low income and job security satisfaction) on the intention to have a first child. We consider a direct and an indirect effect; the latter is mediated by partners’ conflict behaviour, conflict level, and partnership quality. We assume that a satisfactory partnership is positively associated with the intention to have a first child. The analyses are based on a subsample of the German Generations and Gender Survey. For men we found a direct effect of income and an indirect effect of job security satisfaction on childbearing intentions, whereas for women no direct and only a weak indirect impact of precarious work could be observed.employment, fertility, partnerships

Now, later, or never? Using response-time patterns to predict panel attrition

Preventing panel members from attriting is a fundamental challenge for panel surveys. Research has shown that response behavior in earlier waves (response or nonresponse) is a good predictor of panelists’ response behavior in upcoming waves. However, response behavior can be described in greater detail by considering the time until the response is returned. In the present study, we investigated whether respondents who habitually return their survey late and respondents who switch between early and late response in multiple waves are more likely to attrit from a panel. Using data from the GESIS Panel, we found that later response is related to a higher likelihood of attrition (AME = 0.087) and that response-time stability is related to a lower likelihood of attrition (AME = −0.013). Our models predicted most cases of attrition; thus, survey practitioners could potentially predict future attriters by applying these models to their own data

Investigating selection bias of online surveys on coronavirus-related behavioral outcomes

The coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 outbreak has stimulated numerous online surveys that are mainly based on online convenience samples or commercial online access panels where participants select themselves. The results are, nevertheless, often generalized to the general population. In our paper we investigate the potential bias that is introduced by respondents' self-selection. The analysis is based on survey data of the "GESIS Panel Special Survey on the Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 Outbreak in Germany", together with background information of the GESIS Panel. Our analyses show indication of a nonignorable amount of selection bias for measures of personality traits among online survey respondents. This provides some evidence that participating in an online survey and complying with measures that can minimize the risk of being infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus are confounded. Hence, generalizing these results to the general population bears the risk of over or underestimating the share of the population that complies with specific measures

Does personality predict responses to the COVID-19 crisis? Evidence from a prospective large-scale study

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly disrupted people's daily routines and infused their lives with considerable insecurity and uncertainty. However, individuals' responses to the pandemic vary widely. The present study investigates the role of personality traits for key aspects of people's responses to the COVID-19 crisis. In a prospective design using a large-scale panel study (N = 2217) that represents the heterogeneity of the adult population in Germany, we examined whether Big Five domains and facets measured prior to the pandemic predicted individuals' responses to the pandemic in terms of: (a) perceptions of infection risks; (b) behavioral changes to prevent infection; (c) beliefs in the effectiveness of policy measures to combat the further spread of coronavirus; and (d) trust in relevant policymakers and institutions regarding the handling of coronavirus. Results revealed that personality explained only a small portion (between 0.6% and 3.8%) of the variance in the four outcomes. Nonetheless, several Big Five domains and facets had at least small-to-moderate, and theoretically plausible, associations with the outcomes. Overall, Agreeableness and its Trust facet showed the most robust associations with the four outcomes. Most trait-outcome associations were also robust to controlling for three possible confounders (sex, age, and risk-group membership)

In Search of the Best Response Scale in a Mixed-mode Survey (Web and Mail): Evidence from MTMM Experiments in the GESIS Panel

Mixed-mode surveys allow researchers to combine the advantages of multiple modes, for example, the low cost of the web mode with the higher coverage of offline modes. One drawback of combining modes is that there might be systematic differences in measurement across modes. Thus, it would be useful to know which measurement methods work best in all employed modes. This study sets out to find a method that results in the highest measurement quality across self-administered web mode questionnaires (web mode) and self-administered paper questionnaires sent out by mail (mail mode). Two Multitrait-Multimethod (MTMM) experiments employing questions on environmental attitudes and supernatural beliefs were implemented in the GESIS Panel, a probability-based panel in Germany. The experiments were designed to estimate the measurement quality of three different response scales: A seven-point fully labelled scale, a 101-point numerical openended scale and an eleven-point partially labelled scale. Our results show that the elevenpoint partially labelled scale consistently leads to the highest measurement quality across both modes. We thus recommend using eleven-point partially labelled scales when measuring attitudes or beliefs in mixed-mode surveys combining web and mail mode

Die Nutzung des GESIS Panel als offene Umfrageinfrastruktur für innovative Forschungsprojekte

Das GESIS Panel ist eine Panelbefragung mit sechs Erhebungen pro Jahr, die verallgemeinerbare Aussagen auf die deutschsprachige Wohnbevölkerung der Bundesrepublik Deutschland zulässt. Einzigartig für Deutschland ist, dass mit dem GESIS Panel, Forschenden aus den Sozialwissenschaften und benachbarten Disziplinen die Gelegenheit geboten wird, in der Regel kostenfrei eigene Längs- oder Querschnittbefragungen durchzuführen. Das GESIS Panel dient auch als zentrale Datenerhebungsinfrastruktur des Projektes "Veränderung durch Krisen? Solidarität und Entsolidarisierung in Deutschland und Europa" (Solikris). Im folgenden Beitrag wird das GESIS Panel zunächst allgemein vorgestellt. Anschließend wird seine Nutzung zur Beantwortung der Solikris-Fragestellungen in den einzelnen Arbeitspaketen besprochen. Der Beitrag schließt mit einer beispielhaften Darstellung qualitativer Anmerkungen der Studienteilnehmer*innen zum Solikris-Fragenprogramm. Die entsprechenden Kommentare unterstreichen die Relevanz der behandelten Themen

Exportchancen und Unterstützungsbedarf im Bereich erneuerbare Energien

Die Erneuerbare-Energien-Branche stellt einen wichtigen Wirtschaftsfaktor mit wachsender Exportbedeutung dar. Dienstleistungsunterneh- men, die ihre bestehenden Exportpotenziale noch nicht ausschöpfen, benötigen spezifische Internationalisierungsstrategien und angepasste Unterstützungsmaßnahmen

The Review of Divorce Research Remains a Review. A Response to Josef Brüderl

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