Perceived injustice in unified Germany and mental health. Partial primary data from the first wave of the study "Justice as a Problem within Reunified Germany".

Research Questions/Hypotheses:

Research Design:

Fully Standardized Survey Instrument (provides question formulation and answer options); single measurement

Measurement Instruments/Apparatus:

The survey instrument consists partly of self-constructed instruments. Some modifications or sections of standardized measuring instruments were used. All answers were recorded with rating scales, though depending on the instrument between 4-7 response alternatives were available.
The core variables collected with the self-constructed instruments included differential perceptions, difference justice, retrospective changes in the East and the West, future changes to employment and occupation in the East and the West, as well as emotions surrounding the professional quality of life in a reunified Germany. The considerations which led to the formulation of the relevant items can be found in Schmitt, Maes & Narrow (1995).
Life satisfaction was measured using standardized measuring instruments (measured with an extended and modified version of the questionnaire on life satisfaction from Fahrenberg, Myrtek, Wilk & Kreutel, 1986).
Depression was measured with a simplified German version of the Beck Depression Inventory from Schmitt & Maes (2000).
Self-esteem was measured with a German version of the Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale by Rosenberg (1965).
Mental health was measured using the SG scale of the Trier Personality Questionnaire from Becker (1989).

Data Collection Method:

Data collection in the absence of an experimenter

• Mail Survey

Population:

East and West Germans in a reunified Germany

Survey Time Period:

January 1996

Sample:

3 recruitment strategies
(1) Geographically stratified random sample taken from the population register
(2) Geographically stratified random sample taken from the electronic telephone book
(3) Volunteers found via geographically targeted advertisements placed in the press. Detailed description of the sampling in Schmal, Maes & Schmidt (1996)

Gender Distribution:

40,3% female subjects (n=1020)
59,6% male subjects (n=1511)

Age Distribution: 14-88 years

Spatial Coverage (Country/Region/City): Germany

Subject Recruitment:

Recruitment was done via registration offices from selected municipalities, newspaper advertisements and press releases, as well as using the electronic telephone book. In total, approximately 25,000 people were contacted with the request to participate in the study. 2,345 people expressed interest. A further 700 people who volunteered through targeted advertisements and press releases were given the questionnaires directly.

Sample Size:

2534 individuals

Return/Drop Out:

The 79.9% response rate was slightly higher than in comparable studies.