scholarly journals Interreligious Dialogue Activities in East Germany

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 491-512
Author(s):  
Anna Körs ◽  
Karsten Lehmann
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Cultural Differences ◽  
East Germany ◽  
Organizational Structures ◽  
Interreligious Dialogue ◽  
West Germany ◽  
Low Density ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
East And West Germany ◽  
Dominant Tendency

Abstract With regards to the religious situation, Germany still is a highly divided country. This draws our attention to the specific characteristics of IRD-activities in the eastern parts of Germany. Based on literature review and mapping exercises, we will argue, firstly, that the interreligious dialogue scene in East Germany is characterized by a comparatively low density of activities that are primarily embedded into major religious and state-related organizational structures. Secondly, we will discuss potential explanations of this lower dialogue level with regards to present-day socio-cultural differences and asymmetries between East and West Germany. Thirdly, we argue that the case of East Germany gives evidence to pay particular attention to numerically smaller religious groups within IRD as well as religiously unaffiliated parts of society. Consequently, we have to rethink the conceptualization of IRD in view of secularization as the dominant tendency in many European countries.

Geschlechtsspezifische Ost-West-Unterschiede im Erwerbsverlauf

2020 ◽  
Vol 69 (6-7) ◽  
pp. 445-466
Author(s):  
Dana Müller ◽  
Michaela Fuchs
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
East Germany ◽  
West Germany ◽  
Gender Inequalities ◽  
East And West Germany ◽  
Career Opportunities ◽  
Gender Specific Differences ◽  
East And West ◽  
Gender Specific

Zusammenfassung Dieser Beitrag beschreibt die Entwicklung geschlechtsspezifischer Ungleichheiten über die letzten drei Jahrzehnte in Ost- und Westdeutschland. Unterschiede zwischen beiden Regionen bestehen nach wie vor. Sie haben ihren Ursprung in den verschiedenen gesellschaftlichen Ansätzen der Gleichstellung der Geschlechter vor der Wiedervereinigung und den unterschiedlichen strukturellen Gegebenheiten am Arbeitsmarkt. Dennoch besitzen nach wie vor weder die Frauen in Westdeutschland noch in Ostdeutschland die gleichen Einkommens- und Karrierechancen wie Männer. Die Bemühungen des Staates, den Abbau geschlechtsspezifischer Ungleichheiten voranzutreiben, werden anhand der zahlreichen Maßnahmen der letzten Jahre sichtbar. Sie reichen aber noch nicht aus, wie die Zahlen im Beitrag zeigen. Abstract: Gender-specific Differences on the Labour Market in East and West Germany This article describes the development of gender inequalities over the last three decades in East and West Germany. There are still differences between the two regions. They have their origin in the different social concepts to gender equality before reunification and the different structural conditions on the labour market. Nevertheless, not only women in West Germany but also in East Germany still do not have the same income and career opportunities as men. The state’s efforts to promote the reduction of gender-specific inequalities are evident from the numerous measures taken in recent years. However, they are not yet sufficient.

scholarly journals The Effect of the Post-Socialist Transition on Inequality of Educational Opportunity: Evidence from German Unification

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 461-473
Author(s):  
Bastian A Betthäuser
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Educational Opportunity ◽  
Educational Inequality ◽  
East Germany ◽  
West Germany ◽  
German Unification ◽  
Federal Republic Of Germany ◽  
East And West Germany ◽  
East And West ◽  
Inequality Of Educational Opportunity

Abstract In 1990, German unification led to an abrupt and extensive restructuring of the educational system and economy of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) as the latter was reintegrated into the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG). However, the consequences of this large-scale institutional change for the educational inequality between children from different social class backgrounds in East Germany continue to be poorly understood. This article seeks to shed new light on this question by using a quasi-experimental approach to examine the difference in educational inequality between East and West Germany before and after German unification. We compare changes in the class gradient in the attainment of comparable school and university qualifications in East and West Germany across six birth cohorts, including three cohorts of individuals who completed their schooling after unification. We find that before unification, inequality of educational opportunity at the mid-secondary, upper-secondary and tertiary level was substantially lower in East Germany than in West Germany and that unification led to a substantial and sustained convergence of the level of inequality of educational opportunity in East Germany towards that of West Germany.

Wage Adjustment, Competitiveness and Unemployment – East Germany after Unification

2009 ◽  
Vol 229 (2-3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Werner Smolny
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
East Germany ◽  
German Economy ◽  
West Germany ◽  
Relative Wage ◽  
Wage Setting ◽  
East And West Germany ◽  
Market Situation ◽  
East German ◽  
Wage Adjustment

SummaryNearly 20 years after unification large differences of the labor market situation in East and West Germany persist. Wages are still considerably lower, the unemployment rate is about twice of the West German level, and the competitiveness of the East German economy seems to be low. This paper analyzes the process of (relative) wage adjustment in East Germany and the resulting development of competitiveness and unemployment differentials. We present estimates of the wage adjustment in East vs. West Germany based on wage convergence and effects of unemployment on wage growth. The central focus of the paper is the empirical analysis of the interaction of the development of competitiveness and the labor market situation. The results reveal large equilibrium gaps for wages and unemployment which are based on the wage-setting process, the behavior of competitiveness and the adjustment of unemployment.

The Luther Anniversary in East Germany

1984 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 112-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert F. Goeckel
Keyword(s):  
East Germany ◽  
Martin Luther ◽  
West Germany ◽  
The Other ◽  
Intermediate Range ◽  
Lutheran Church ◽  
East And West Germany ◽  
International Attention ◽  
State Cooperation ◽  
The Church

In 1983 two events focused international attention on East and West Germany. One was the collapse of talks on intermediate range missiles in Geneva and the consequent deployment of the missiles by NATO. The other was the 500th anniversary of the birth of Martin Luther. The Luther anniversary cast the spotlight particularly on communist East Germany, which revised its previously negative interpretation of Luther and not only marked his birth with elaborate festivities but also extended unprecedented assistance to the Lutheran church for its celebration. Yet, just as many wondered if inter-German detente would survive the I.N.F. deployment, so, too, many wondered at the nature of the church-state cooperation in the G.D.R., and if it would survive the Luther Year. The present analysis examines the character and direction of this churchstate relationship, using the Luther Year experience as evidence.

East-West divide will persist in Germany

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
East Germany ◽  
National Level ◽  
West Germany ◽  
The West ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Ruhr Area ◽  
Political Processes ◽  
East And West Germany ◽  
Skills Shortage ◽  
East West

Subject Differences between East and West Germany. Significance Considerable investment notwithstanding, the economy in East Germany is still weaker than in the West. This is compounded by demographic change. Moreover, voting behaviour and the distribution of political attitudes in the East are markedly different from the West. These factors will continue to shape political processes on the national level. Impacts The skills shortage in the East is unlikely to be alleviated by migration as the anti-immigration sentiment persists. The necessary reallocation of tax funds to East Germany will remain a bone of contention. The continuing decline of some industrial areas in the West (particularly in the Ruhr area) will exacerbate this conflict.

scholarly journals Socio-economic transformation of small towns in East Germany after 1990 - Colditz case study

2012 ◽  
Vol 17 (17) ◽  
pp. 33-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Waldemar Cudny
Keyword(s):  
East Germany ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Economic Transformation ◽  
West Germany ◽  
Social Changes ◽  
East And West Germany ◽  
Spatial Changes ◽  
Size Population ◽  
The Town

Socio-economic transformation of small towns in East Germany after 1990 - Colditz case study The article presents the main demographic and social, as well as functional and spatial changes that took place in Colditz after 1990. The town is inhabited by 4,870 people (2009) and is situated in Saxony, in the area of the former German Democratic Republic (GDR). The aim of the article is to present the main changes, which took place there after East and West Germany reunited in 1990. The author describes demographic and social changes in the population size, population growth, migration balance, unemployment, and other elements of urban community. Moreover, the article presents the changes in the economic-functional structure, such as de-industrialisation, succession of urban functions, and tourism development, as well as the main spatial changes in Colditz, such as architectural revitalisation and reconstruction of urban infrastructure. In the conclusions, the author briefly presents potential directions in the future development of the town.

Catching-up of East German Labour Productivity in the 1990s

2000 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 271-297 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ray Barrell ◽  
Dirk Willem te Velde
Keyword(s):  
East Germany ◽  
Labour Productivity ◽  
West Germany ◽  
Foreign Firms ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
East And West Germany ◽  
Catching Up ◽  
East German ◽  
East And West ◽  
Organization Of Production

Abstract We provide empirical evidence for exogenous and endogenous catching-up of East German labour productivity to West German levels. We argue that labour productivity in East Germany has caught up faster than has happened elsewhere. The sudden formation of the German Monetary Union was followed by large transfers to East Germany, migration of workers to West Germany, reorganization and privatization of East German firms. This has quickly led to a partial closing of the organizational, idea and object gaps that existed between East and West Germany. This paper analyses labour productivity in East and West Germany using both aggregate German data and unbalanced panel analysis of developments in East and West Germany. Factors affecting the organization of production, and especially privatization and `foreign' firms, are found to be particularly important in this context.

Öffentliche Haushalte in Ost- und Westdeutschland nach 30 Jahren – Vergleichende Bestandsaufnahme aus finanzwissenschaftlicher Perspektive

2020 ◽  
Vol 69 (6-7) ◽  
pp. 395-416
Author(s):  
Mario Hesse ◽  
Thomas Lenk ◽  
Philipp Glinka
Keyword(s):  
Public Finance ◽  
East Germany ◽  
West Germany ◽  
German Unification ◽  
Fiscal Equalization ◽  
East And West Germany ◽  
30Th Anniversary ◽  
Degree Of Equivalence ◽  
East And West ◽  
High Degree

Zusammenfassung Das 30-jährige Jubiläum der Deutschen Einheit gibt Anlass zu einer Erfolgsanalyse. Der vorliegende Beitrag untersucht verschiedene Aspekte der Angleichung zwischen Ost- und Westdeutschland aus einer finanzwissenschaftlichen Perspektive. Der Fokus liegt auf der Entwicklung der Länder- und kommunalen Haushalte. Einnahmenseitig haben sich das System des bundesstaatlichen Finanzausgleichs in Verbindung mit den Solidarpakten I und II sowie die kommunalen Finanzausgleichssysteme als besonders leistungsfähige Mechanismen erwiesen, um ein hohes Maß an Gleichwertigkeit zu erreichen. Zugleich sind die ostdeutschen Länder bis an den aktuellen Rand und voraussichtlich auch künftig auf hohe Finanzausgleichsmittel angewiesen, um ihre öffentlichen Aufgaben angemessen erfüllen zu können. Darüber hinaus beleuchtet der Beitrag die Entwicklung der Ausgaben- und der Verschuldungsniveaus Ost- und Westdeutschlands. Insgesamt zeigt sich, dass die deutsche Teilung weiterhin nicht vollständig überwunden ist. Abstract: Public Budgets in East and West Germany After 30 Years – Stocktaking and Success Analysis From A Perspective of Public Finance The 30th anniversary of German unification gives cause for a success analysis. This article examines various aspects of the alignment between East and West Germany from a perspective of public finance. The focus is on the development of state and municipal budgets. On the revenue side, the system of federal fiscal equalization in conjunction with the Solidarity Pacts I and II and the municipal fiscal equalization systems have proven to be particularly effective mechanisms for achieving a high degree of equivalence. At the same time, East Germany is, and will probably continue to be, dependent on high levels of fiscal equalisation in order to adequately fulfil their public tasks. In addition, the article examines the development of expenditure and debt levels in East and West Germany. Overall, it shows that the division of Germany is still not completely finished.

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