2.2 Germany

The German Internet Panel (GIP) is a longitudinal panel survey of the Collaborative Research Center “Political Economy of Reforms” (SFB 884). As a SFB infrastructure project, the GIP collects data on individual attitudes and preferences relevant in political and economic decision-making processes. The data obtained provide the empirical basis for the scientific research of projects at the SFB 884. Topics covered in the GIP are divers and include attitudes towards the reform policies, the welfare state, German and EU politics, health, social inequality, education, employment and key socio-demographic information.

The GIP conducts online survey waves on a bi-monthly basis. The GIP is based on a probability sample of the general population in Germany aged 16 to 75. Initial sample was drawn by means of strict random probability methods. Recruitment was conducted offline with face-to-face interviews, during which respondents were invited to the online panel. To ensure the representativeness of the online and offline population, the GIP includes respondents without computer and Internet access, by providing them with the necessary equipment and training. The GIP data are available to the scientific community via the GESIS Data Archive for the Social Sciences as scientific use files.

The 2017 EIPS survey was part of the 29th wave of the GIP. Questionnaire documentation (in German) for this and all other waves that have been published in the GESIS Data Archive thus far is available for download. For enquiries about data access, consult The University of Mannheim.