According to the congruence hypothesis, job and study satisfaction will be higher when individual interests and the respective environment (both conceptualised according to Holland’s RIASEC model) are congruent. As our target group were teacher students, all participants who did not intend to become a teacher or did not meet other inclusion criteria (e.g., no missing data on relevant variables) were removed from the sample, resulting in a final sample of N = 1171. Teacher students completed questionnaires on their vocational interests and their satisfaction with course content. To obtain an assessment of the environment (study majors), N = 166 lecturers were asked to rate their courses with respect to Holland’s RIASEC model. As previous findings have indicated that conclusions are influenced by the congruence measure that is used, we applied two different approaches. First, we computed the profile correlation between the individual interest profile and the environmental profile for each individual to measure congruence. Profile correlation scores were then correlated with satisfaction with course content scores. This correlation was significant ( r = .21, p < .001), offering support for the congruence hypothesis. Second, Response Surface Analysis (RSA) was used to predict satisfaction with course content scores from the individual interest and environmental assessment variables and their interaction separately for each interest dimension. Results showed that the relationships between these three constructs were complex, but evidence for the congruence hypothesis could not be found. This makes this study the first study to investigate this hypothesis using RSA methodology.

Using longitudinal data from the German Socio-Economic Panel, the study examines whether the impact of unemployment on the risk of becoming socially isolated is different for women and men and whether it can be traced back to financial straits. An isolating effect of unemployment is found only with regard to men, to long-term unemployment, and to social isolation in terms of scarce contact to friends and family. There is no such effect with regard to women, to short-time unemployment, and to social isolation in terms of a non-participation in civic associations. It is also found that the isolating impact of unemployment is only to a small extent attributable to the financial situation of the unemployed.

Das Projekt „MoSAiK“ wird/wurde im Rahmen der gemeinsamen „Qualitatsoffensive Lehrerbildung“ von Bund und Landern aus Mitteln des Bundesministeriums fur Bildung und Forschung gefordert.

Objective: The study examines whether the risk of social isolation is affected by a union formation, marriage and by relationship endings. Background: Social isolation is a broadly discussed social problem but little is known about how social isolation emerges. As regards the role of partner relationships, previous research has yielded mixed results on whether there are isolating effects of marriage, separations or widowhood. Method: We use longitudinal data deriving from the German Socioeconomic Panel to analyse the impact of transitions in partner relationships on different manifestations of social isolation (disconnectedness from friends and relatives, non-participation in civic associations). Analyses on the impact of union formation and marriage are based on information on 11,359 persons. Analyses on the impact of relationship endings are based on information on 30,730 persons. Results: Union formation and marriage are found to have little effect in terms of promoting social isolation. Endings of partner relationships, by contrast, entail an increased risk of being isolated at the same time from friendships, relatives and civil associations. Conclusion: Taken together, the findings suggest that those who had limited their social interaction to the spouse or partner often fail to become re-integrated when the relationship had ended. It can be assumed that this is a common pathway into social isolation.

Objectives The widely acknowledged negative association between social isolation and physical and mental health is commonly interpreted in terms of social causation and has served as an important frame of reference for many interventions. However, evidence of social causation is likely biased because most studies cannot differentiate between social causation and health selection. The public attention given to this field of research indicates a need for analytical strategies that improve the understanding of the underlying link between social isolation and physical and mental health. Methods Using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP) study (2004 to 2012) of 6740 men and 7189 women aged 50 and above, we estimated dynamic panel models with fixed effects that allow us to probe the social causation hypothesis while accounting for direct selection (reverse causality) and indirect selection (unobserved heterogeneity). All analyses were conducted for women and men separately. Results We found that social isolation adversely affected mental health among older men and women to a degree that suggests practical relevance. However, we could not find a similar effect on physical health. A considerable part of the association between social isolation and both health outcomes was attributable to indirect selection, whereas direct selection led to underestimating the relevance of social isolation for mental health. Conclusion The results provide more convincing evidence that social isolation has adverse effects on mental health among older people. We conclude that effective interventions targeting social isolation might indeed be suitable for improving mental health among older people.

Even in the online dating era, individuals will seek intimate partners who live physically nearby. This paper considers the validity of different partner market measures in German NUTS-3 regions; the often used sex ratio is contrasted with different versions of the availability ratio (AR) and versions of the partner market density (PMD). The paper discusses (a) how conceptional aspects of the partner market are reflected in the various indicators. Using aggregated population data provided by German statistical offices, (b) the partner market in Germany is described as measured by the different partner market indicators. Linking them to micro-level data from the German Socio-economic Panel, the paper (c) compares the effects of the various partner market measures on union formation. A simple sex ratio does not show variance over the life course or between cohorts, nor does it determine the rate of couple formation. The AR and PMD reveal more plausible distributions by age and cohort and higher criterion validity, especially when accounting for availableness according to marital status. With regard to men, the AR demonstrates the strongest impact on union formation; with regard to women, PMD seems more important.

The paper presents a data-based comparison of three indicators of social isolation that are frequently used in contemporary social research: (a) low frequency of social contact with friends, relatives, and neighbors (social contact indicator); (b) absence of a discussion network (discussion network indicator); (c) absence of social support (support indicator). All three indicators are in line with an understanding of social isolation as the absence of close personal relationships. However, as shown in this paper, they are correlated only weakly to each other and lead to different results concerning the overall share of social isolation, age disparities, and gender differences of social isolation. Against this background, the paper proceeds with considerations on the content validity and criterion validity of the three indicators. Different versions of each indicator are scrutinized to gain insights on content validity. Conclusions on criterion validity are drawn from an examination of the correlations between the indicators and health, poverty, satisfaction with family life, and satisfaction with social life. Findings suggest a higher validity of the social contact indicator compared to the other two indicators. Data source is the German Socio-Economic Panel. Discussions of content validity are additionally based on analyses using the German Family Survey and the German Aging Survey.

Sociological literature suggests a causal effect of poverty on the risk of social isolation. While previous research on this link is only based on cross-sectional data, this article presents more valid evidence for this assumption by applying fixed-effects regression methods and panel data (German Socio-economic Panel). First, the study shows that the poverty effect on isolation occurs regardless of time-constant unobserved heterogeneity. Second, it examines whether poverty and isolation are correlated because of a mutual association with critical life events (health deterioration, dissolutions of couple relationships, and job loss) that may increase both the risk for poverty and the risk for isolation. Regarding men, the effect of isolation on poverty is not attributable to the cited biographical transitions. Regarding women, it is only in partbut not in wholeattributable to dissolutions of couple relationships.

Der Beitrag informiert uber ein am Institut fur Soziologie der Universitat Heidelberg durchgefuhrtes Forschungsprojekt uber den Partnermarkt in Deutschland. Nach einer Erlauterung der theoretischen und methodischen Grundlagen der im Projekt entwickelten Partnermarktindikatoren werden erste Untersuchungsergebnisse vorgestellt. Dabei geht es zunachst um die Deskription des Partnermarkts mit Blick auf dessen Veranderung im Lebensverlauf, dessen Entwicklung in der Kohortenabfolge sowie auf regionale Unterschiede. Anschliesend werden Ergebnisse uber die Implikationen eines unausgewogenen Partnermarkts fur die Pravalenz und Inzidenz von Paarbeziehungen, fur die Alters- und Bildungshomogamie, fur die interethnische Partnerwahl und fur die Stabilitat von Paarbeziehungen diskutiert.

The study explores the consequences of gender-selective internal migration for regional mating chances in Germany, comparing different cohorts as well as different types of regions. Indicators of the partner market based on time series of the official German regional population statistics are combined with indicators of migration and on regional economic, educational, and settlement structures. Instead of the simple sex ratio, which is the standard measure for partner market conditions in previous research, the study at hand uses the availability ratio suggested by Goldman et al. (Popul Index 50(1):5-25, 1984). The availability ratio takes into account that partner markets are structured by age preferences. Like previous studies, results show that gender-selective migration has led to a strong deterioration of mating chances for men in most eastern districts of Germany. Exceptions are districts offering universities as well as a large tertiary sector. But, unlike previous research, results also show that migration-caused imbalances of the partner market in eastern German districts are not extraordinarily high. In the western part of Germany, there were at times even stronger partner market imbalances for some male cohorts as a consequence of oscillating birth rates.

Der Betrag behandelt den vielfach dokumentierten Zusammenhang zwischen Armut und einem erhohten Risiko sozialer Isolation, d.h. dem Fehlen personlicher Beziehungen. Diskutiert wird, wie sich dieser Zusammenhang begrunden lasst. Beruht er lediglich auf Selektion? Oder handelt es sich um einen Kausalzusammenhang? Beruht dieser Kausalzusammenhang darauf, dass das Aufrechterhalten personlicher Beziehungen in modernen Gesellschaften nicht zuletzt auch materielle Mittel erfordert? Oder gibt es soziale Ruckzuge aufgrund von Angsten vor sozialen Vergleichen oder vor Stigmatisierung? Zu diesen Fragen werden empirische Ergebnisse berichtet, die die Vermutung eines Kausalzusammenhanges unterstutzten. Weiterfuhrende Befunde sprechen auserdem fur die Ruckzugsthese.

Der Beitrag untersucht die Verbreitung von Paarbeziehungen in Deutschland anhand verschiedener sozialwissenschaftlicher Umfrageprogramme (Sozio-oekonomisches Panel, Beziehungs- und Familienpanel, Familiensurvey, Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe). Er zeigt, dass die Frage nach der Entwicklung der Partnerbindung eine differenzierte Antwort erfordert: Die Verbreitung von stabileren Paarbeziehungen mit Mindestdauer von einem Jahr ist während der letzten Jahrzehnte zurückgegangen. Subsumiert man unter Partnerbindung aber auch sehr kurze Beziehungserfahrungen, dann kann man mit Blick auf die jüngeren Geburtsjahrgänge von einer weitgehenden Konstanz der Bindungsquoten sprechen. Darüber hinaus zeigen die Auswertungen Unterschiede zwischen den Geschlechtern, zwischen Ost- und Westdeutschland und zwischen verschiedenen Bildungsgruppen auf. Ein erheblicher Anstieg der Partnerlosigkeit ist vor allem bei Männern in Ostdeutschland zu beobachten.

Der vorliegende Beitrag präsentiert erstmals eine Beschreibung des Partnermarkts in Deutschland und dessen Entwicklung auf der Basis von Längsschnittdaten. Die Ergebnisse basieren auf einer Auswertung kleinräumiger Bevölkerungsdaten auf Kreisebene und auf einem Indikatorenkonzept, das mit der Altersrelevanz, Bildungsrelevanz, Konkurrenz und Verfügbarkeit die theoretisch zentralen Dimensionen des Partnermarkts adäquat berücksichtigt. Untersucht werden verschiedene Annahmen über die Entwicklung der Partnermarktchancen im Lebensverlauf und über diesbezügliche Unterschiede zwischen unterschiedlichen Geburtsjahrgängen. Herausgearbeitet werden die geschlechtsspezifischen Muster der Altersabhängigkeit des Partnermarkts sowie die aus der Geburtenentwicklung, dem Wandel partnerschaftlicher Lebensformen, der Bildungsexpansion und aus Migrationsprozessen resultierenden Kohortenunterschiede.

Aufgrund der ungleichen Verteilung von arbeitsmarkt- und ausbildungsbedingten Binnenwanderungen auf die Geschlechter und auf verschiedene Altersgruppen determiniert raumliche Mobilitat die Struktur der lokalen Partnermarkte, d.h. der Relationen von alters- und bildungsmasig zueinander passenden Mannern und Frauen im kleinraumigen Kontext. Der Beitragt prasentiert hierzu Untersuchungen, die auf einem Vergleich kleinraumiger regionaler Einheiten (Landkreise und kreisfreie Stadte), auf Langsschnittbetrachtungen und auf theorieadaquaten Partnermarktindikatoren (alters- und verfugbarkeitsgewichtete Availability Ratio) beruhen. Die Ergebnisse verdeutlichen den Zusammenhang zwischen den Partnermarktbedingungen und regionalen Strukturmerkmalen. Zentrale Datengrundlage der Untersuchungen ist die regionale Bevolkerungsstatistik der statistischen Landesamter.