Understanding and attitudes towards old-age provision in Germany (VHAlt)
Demographic change has an impact on the sustainability of statutory pension insurance. On the one hand, this poses a challenge for socio-political decision-makers, as they have to adequately communicate the necessary adjustments and convince those affected of their meaningfulness. On the other hand, the developments go hand in hand with increasing demands on the working population, because the resulting greater personal responsibility for old-age provision takes place in an environment of increasing uncertainty. To solve this problem, one of the demands is to improve general financial literacy through means of financial education.
Both aspects – communication or information and financial education – should lead to desired changes in behaviour (acceptance of reforms, commitment to other forms of old-age provision). However, this requires knowledge about whether and to what extent citizens adequately understand the system of old-age provision. The importance of the understanding (or misunderstanding) of a certain content area for opinion formation and behaviour is underpinned by studies from other research areas. However, no findings are available for the area of old-age provision. The project aims to contribute to closing this research gap. In particular, the following, central socio-political research questions will be investigated: (1) What are the (mis)understandings and attitudes towards old-age provision in Germany? (2) Do (mis)understanding and attitudes vary for certain population groups? (3) Can causal relationships (cause-effect relationships) be identified between (mis)understanding, attitudes and behaviour in the context of old-age provision? (4) What recommendations for action can be derived and supported through the development of communication recommendations and exemplary learning units?
The research approach is innovative in terms of content through recourse to interdisciplinary theoretical approaches and the focus on different groups. Methodologically, the combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches, the careful development of instruments as well as the “survey experiments”, which have not yet been used in the context of old-age provision, represent innovative elements.
Further information on the VHAlt project can be found here.
The project is funded by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (BMAS) within the framework of the Funding Network for Interdisciplinary Social Policy Research (FIS).
Project duration: 09/
Project team
- Prof. Dr. Carmela Aprea
- Ronja Baginski
Cooperation partners
Prof. Dr. Silke Übelmesser; Jana Schütz (Friedrich Schiller University Jena); Prof. Dr. David Leiser (Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel)
Project advisory group
Dr. Leila Akremi (Forschungsnetzwerk Alterssicherung FNA); Dr. Stefan Mondorf (Confederation of German Employers' Associations BDA); Ingo Schäfer (Confederation of German Trade Unions DGB); Martin Seyfer (Teacher at the Wilhelm-Röpke-School in Ettlingen)
Publications
Aprea, C., Baginski, R., Schütz, J. & Übelmesser, S. (2025). Verständnis, Haltungen und Reformpräferenzen zur Altersvorsorge in Deutschland: Gibt es einen Generationenkonflikt? Working Paper: Mannheim.
Übelmesser, S., Schütz, J., Baginski, R. & Aprea, C. (2023). Coronakrise: Auswirkungen auf die finanziellen Entscheidungen und Folgen für die Altersvorsorge. Impuls, 2023(11), 1–4.
Schütz, J., Übelmesser, S., Baginski, R. & Aprea, C. (2022). Pension reform preferences in Germany: Does information matter?CESifo Working Papers, 10072. München: Munich Society for the Promotion of Economic Research.
Project-related presentations
Aprea, C., Baginski, R., Übelmesser, S. & Schütz, J. (2025). Alterssicherung in Deutschland: Verständnis und Haltungen sowie wahrgenommene Reformnotwendigkeit und Reformpräferenzen im intergenerationalen Vergleich. Vortrag beim Ausschuss Alterssicherung der Gesellschaft für Versicherungswissenschaft und -gestaltung e. V., Berlin, Germany.
Aprea, C. (2024). Assessment and promotion of pension literacy. Workshop on Financial Literacy, Education, and Behavioural Insights, Leuven, Belgium.
Aprea, C., Baginski, R., Frick, S., Schütz, J. & Übelmesser, S. (2024). Development and validation of a test measuring the understanding of pension systems. Financial Literacy Research, Pathways to becoming financially competent, Academic conference, Brussels, Belgium.
Baginski, R. (2024). Development and validation of a test measuring pension system understanding. BMBF-Workshop „Financial Education in the Stages of Lifelong Learning”, Berlin, Germany.
Baginski, R. (2024). Entwicklung und Validierung eines Tests zur Messung des Rentensystemverständnisses in Deutschland. FNA-Graduiertenkolloquium 2024, Berlin, Germany.
Baginski, R. & Aprea, C. (2024). Lay conceptions of the German pension system. 13th International Conference on Conceptual Change 2024, EARLI SIG 03, Munich, Germany.
Baginski, R., Aprea, C. & Frick, S. (2024). Entwicklung und Validierung eines Tests zur Messung des Rentensystemverständnisses in Deutschland. Jahrestagung 2024 der Sektion Berufs- und Wirtschaftspädagogik der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Erziehungswissenschaft, Dresden, Germany.
Suna, M., Baginski, R. & Aprea, C. (2024). Pension as a learning object: Design, testing and evaluation of a game-based learning environment. JURE 2024 Conference, Sevilla, Spain.
Suna, M., Baginski, R. & Aprea, C. (2024). Pension as a learning object: Design, testing and evaluation of a gamified learning environment. BMBF-Workshop „Financial Education in the Stages of Lifelong Learning”, Berlin, Germany.
Aprea, C. (2023). Development and validation of a test instrument measuring the understanding of pension systems. First Turin Workshop on Financial Literacy – Financial education: From better personal finance to improved citizenship, Torino, Italy.
Aprea, C., Baginski, R., Suna, M., Schütz, J. & Übelmesser, S. (2023). Alterssicherung als Lerngegenstand für junge Erwachsene: Demonstration der spielbasierten Lernumgebung „Rentenrallye“. FIS-Forum 2023: Sozialpolitik für die nächste(n) Generation(en), Berlin, Germany.
Aprea, C., Übelmesser, S., Baginski, R. & Schütz, J. (2023). Verständnis des deutschen Alterssicherungssystem sowie wahrgenommene Reformnotwendigkeit und Reformpräferenzen im intergenerationalen Vergleich. FIS-Forum 2023: Sozialpolitik für die nächste(n) Generation(en), Berlin, Germany.
Baginski, R., Aprea, C., Frick, S., Übelmesser, S. & Schütz, J. (2023). Development and validation of a test instrument measuring the understanding of pension systems. MIFE Early Career Workshop, Mannheim Institute for Financial Education, Mannheim.
Baginski, R. (2023). Entwicklung und Validierung eines Tests zur Messung des Verständnisses in Bezug auf das deutsche Altersvorsorgesystem. FNA-Graduiertenkolloquium 2023, Berlin, Germany.
Suna, M., Baginski, R. & Aprea, C. (2023). Altersvorsorge als Lerngegenstand: Design, Erprobung und Evaluation einer spielbasierten Lernumgebung. Jahrestagung 2023 der Sektion Berufs- und Wirtschaftspädagogik der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Erziehungswissenschaft (DGfE), Flensburg, Germany.
Baginski, R. (2022). Die Rentenrallye: Design, Erprobung und Evaluation einer gamifizierten Lernumgebung zum Thema Altersvorsorge. FNA-Graduiertenkolloquium 2022, Online.
Baginski, R. & Aprea, C. (2022). Entwicklung und Validierung eines Instruments zur Messung des Verständnisses zur Altersvorsorge in Deutschland. Jahrestagung der Sektion Berufs- und Wirtschaftspädagogik 2022 der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Erziehungswissenschaft (DGfE), Freiburg, Germany.
Baginski, R. (2021). Lay conceptions of old age provision in Germany: An interview study on understanding and attitudes. Early Career Workshop des Mannheim Institute for Financial Education (MIFE), Online.
Baginski, R., Schultheis, J. & Aprea, C. (2021). Young adults’ intuitive conceptions of the pension system in Germany: An interview study. 19th Biennial EARLI Conference 2021: Education and Citizenship: Learning and Instruction and the Shaping of Futures, Online.
Baginski, R. & Schütz, J. (2021). Ausgewählte Aspekte zu Verständnis und Haltungen der Altersvorsorge in Deutschland: Präferenzen für Reformen in der gesetzlichen Rentenversicherung. FNA-Graduiertenkolloquium 2021, Online.
Aprea, C., Schultheis, J. & Baginski, R. (2020). (Fehl-)Konzepte von jungen Erwachsenen zum System der Altersvorsorge in Deutschland: eine Interviewstudie. Jahrestagung der Sektion Berufs- und Wirtschaftspädagogik 2020 der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Erziehungswissenschaft, Online.
Aprea, C., Übelmesser, S., Baginski, R., Schütz, J. (2019). Verständnis und Haltungen zur Altersvorsorge in Deutschland: Ausprägungen und Auswirkungen auf vorsorgebezogenes Verhalten (VHAlt). Posterpräsentation im Rahmen des 3. FIS Forums Dialog, Strategie und Vernetzung, Oktober 2019, Berlin.