The German Socio-Economic Panel: How It All Began

Abstract

The Socio-Economic Panel - usually referred to today as SOEP - has become an integral part of the global scientifically-based research infrastructure in the social, economic, and behavior sciences. The data set is used widely today, both in Germany and internationally, and has long since transcended narrow disciplinary boundaries. Now, with 25 waves (in 2008), the SOEP household panel encompasses a vast amount of data covering a quarter of a century.

Against the background of SOEP’s now universally recognized success, it may be of interest to look back on the last 30 years and examine the origins of this longitudinal study. My focus in the following will therefore be on the period up to the project’s approval, and thus, on the process of SOEP’s birth. This history of the Socio-Economic Panel starts with very personal experiences, judgments, and misjudgments. Reporting on these is crucial, however, to provide a better understanding of the motives that ultimately led to SOEP.