Synthetic data for open and reproducible methodological research in social sciences and official statistics

In der Forschung nehmen Vergleichbarkeit und Reproduzierbarkeit immer mehr an Bedeutung zu. Die empirische Forschung profitiert dabei von Forschungsdatenzentren und Scientific Use Files. Für angewandte Methodenforschung dagegen sind geeignete Datenquellen kaum verfügbar, obwohl gerade in den Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaften komplexe Stichprobendesigns bei der Entwicklung und Anwendung von Schätzmethoden berücksichtigt werden müssen. In dieser Arbeit wird ein synthetischer, jedoch realistischer Datensatz vorgestellt, der gerade die Evaluierung und Entwicklung von Schätzmethoden in den Sozial- und Wirtschaftswissenschaften unterstützt. Der Schwerpunkt liegt dabei auf vergleichbarer und reproduzierbarer Forschung in einer realistischen Umgebung in Bezug auf Individual- und Haushaltsdaten. Dieser Datensatz wird der Forschungsgemeinde frei zur Verfügung gestellt.Open and reproducible research receives more and more attention in the research community. Whereas empirical research may benefit from research data centres or scientific use files that foster using data in a safe environment or with remote access, methodological research suffers from the availability of adequate data sources. In economic and social sciences, an additional drawback results from the presence of complex survey designs in the data generating process, that has to be considered when developing and applying estimators. In the present paper, we present a synthetic but realistic dataset based on social science data, that fosters evaluating and developing estimators in social sciences. The focus is on supporting comparable and reproducible research in a realistic framework providing individual and household data. The outcome is provided as an open research data resource

A Population Based Regional Dynamic Microsimulation of Germany: The MikroSim Model

Microsimulation models are widely used to evaluate the potential effects of different policies on social indicators. Most microsimulation models in use operate on a national level, disregarding regional variations. We describe the construction of a national microsimulation model for Germany, accounting for local variations in each of the more than 10,000 communities in Germany. The database used and the mechanisms implementing the population dynamics are described. Finally, the further development of the database and microsimulation programs are outlined, which will contribute towards a research lab that will be made available to the wider scientific community