Jutta von Maurice, Corinna Kleinert, André Mueller-Kuller, Hans-Guenther Rossbach (Authors): The Potential of the German National Educational Panel Study (NEPS) for Demographics: Exemplary Analyses of the AdultSurvey Data

The German National Educational Panel Study provides high-quality data about educational processes and competence development from early childhood to late adulthood. Based on a multicohort sequence design six representative samples covering the whole life-span (newborns, children in Kindergartens, 5th graders, 9th graders, college freshmen, and adults) with a total amount of about 60,000 target persons were drawn and followed-up. The data collected in all six groups focus on (1) competence development, (2) learning environments, (3) educational decisions and social inequality, (4) effects of migration background, and (5) returns to education. The presentation focuses on data of the NEPS adult survey, which consists of more than 11,500 participants born between 1944 and 1986. Due to its strong focus on collecting retrospective life-course data with state-of-the-art computer assisted interviews, it is particularly suited for analyzing demographical questions. Exemplary analyses – dividing the total sample in broad cohorts – demonstrate the analytical potential of the data set. They illustrate the relation between different structural conditions, individual characteristics (socio-demographic background), individual decisions (e.g., educational decisions and labor marketparticipation), generative decisions and patterns of aging.