Homepage
German economy in transition ‒ weak momentum, low potential growth The Joint Economic Forecast Project Group forecasts a 0.1% decline in Germany's gross domestic product in 2024.…
See page
Internationalisation
Internationalisation The Leibniz Institute for Economic Research Halle (IWH) is responsible for economic research and economic policy advice on a scientific basis. The institute…
See page
Joint Economic Forecast
Joint Economic Forecast The joint economic forecast is an instrument for evaluating the overall economic situation and development in Germany, the euro area and the rest of the…
See page
Ludwig (Interview)
About the CIA and a glass of red wine ... Professor Dr Udo Ludwig on the beginnings of our institute The core of the IWH founding team came from the Institute for Applied Economic…
See page
Projects
Our Projects 07.2022 ‐ 12.2026 Evaluation of the InvKG and the federal STARK programme On behalf of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection, the IWH and the RWI…
See page
Politische Partizipation in Ostdeutschland
Matthias Brachert, Oscar W. Gabriel, Rebekka Heyme, Everhard Holtmann, Tobias Jaeck, Aya Isabel Kleine, Jürgen Maier
Halle (Saale): Zentrum für Sozialforschung Halle e.V. an der Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg,
2019
Abstract
Die Frage, ob in Ostdeutschland politisch „die Uhren anders gehen“, hat Politik und Politikwissenschaft seit der Wiedervereinigung beschäftigt. Wie die Beantwortung der Frage ausfällt, hängt vom zyklischen Verlauf des Wahlverhaltens und dem dadurch ausgelösten dynamischen Wandel des Parteiensystems auf nationaler wie regionaler Ebene wesentlich ab. Schien ein besonderer „Ostfaktor“ in Gestalt der PDS und der ihr Erbe antretenden Partei Die Linke als ostdeutsche Regional-und Interessenpartei gut 25 Jahre lang im gesamtdeutschen Parteiensystem als eine berechenbare politische Größe auf-gehoben, so zeigt das Ergebnis der Bundestagswahl von 2017 ein wieder deutlicher zwischen beiden Landesteilen ́gespaltenes` Wahlverhalten.
Read article
Social Capital and Migration Preferences - An Empirical Analysis for the Case of the Reunified Germany
Peter Bönisch, Lutz Schneider, Walter Hyll
Grincoh Working Papers July 2013,
2013
Abstract
We focus on the relevance of different types of social capital on migration intentions in the context of shrinking regions. On the one hand, formal social capital characterised by weak ties without local roots is supposed to drive selectivity and outmigration. On the other hand, informal social capital stressing strong ties to friends, relatives or neighbours might hinder migration. In our regression results we do not find an effect of shrinking regions on mobility intentions. Thus, living in a shrinking area is by itself not a reason to move away or to invest less in social capital. However, if an individual considers to move away she reduces her participation in informal and formal networks. Individuals characterised by strong informal ties, i.e. strong relationships to friends, relatives or neighbours show a significantly lower probability of moving away. And, more qualified types of social capital as participation in local politics or initiatives seem to encourage spatial mobility.
Read article
Sharing Competences: The Impact of Local Institutional Settings on Voter Turnout
Claus Michelsen, Peter Bönisch, Martin T. W. Rosenfeld
Abstract
Institutions are common predictors of voter turnout. Most research in this field focuses on cross-country comparisons of voting systems, like the impact of compulsory voting or registration systems. Fewer efforts have been devoted to understand the role of local institutions and their impact on political participation. Especially the impact of divided competences in relation to public good provision and its impact on voter turnout has been widely ignored. In the present paper, we analyze the effects of different institutional settings for inter-municipal cooperation on voter turnout. We use data from local elections in Germany, held in 2003 and 2004. Overall, we analyze aggregate voter turnout of 1661 municipalities and find strong evidence for our hypothesis that local institutional settings are influential in this context. Further, our results indicate that the better competences correspond to the spatial dimension of local public goods, the higher should be the voter turnout.
Read article
