Content and Objectives

For many years, research and social debate have repeatedly emphasised that, in addition to gross domestic product, the well-being of the population is a key indicator for measuring a country's prosperity. The well-being of the population can be described using objective and subjective characteristics. The BiB.Monitor well-being focuses on subjective well-being, which is measured by the satisfaction of the population. Subjective well-being is linked to a number of other events. On the one hand, it is linked to demographic events such as the decision to have a partner or children, migration movements or people's longevity. On the other hand, empirical studies show correlations with events such as unemployment, loneliness, involuntary childlessness and children's development opportunities. Furthermore, family, education and labour market policy measures can influence subjective well-being. These changes can in turn change the structure of the population through demographic events. In addition, there are repeated discussions in the political arena about an expanded measurement of well-being - as a federal government departmental research institution, the BiB aims to contribute to these discussions in the political arena with this cross-research project.

The subjective well-being of different population groups living in Germany, how it is distributed across the entire population, how unequal this distribution is and how different indicators of satisfaction (such as area-specific satisfaction) are presented over the course of life will be recorded and evaluated in an annual BiB.monitor of well-being. The first BiB.Monitor was published in 2023 and a further edition with a different focus is planned for 2024. The cross-research project combines the different research contents of the BiB and its activities in policy advice. The data basis of the BiB.Monitor is primarily the German Family Demography Panel Study (FReDA), which has surveyed a large number of relevant satisfaction measures in detail from the outset. The satisfaction of the population over the age of 50 is recorded on the basis of data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), for which a co-operation was entered into with the SHARE Berlin Institute.