@article{KreyenfeldHornungKubisch, author = {Kreyenfeld, Michaela and Hornung, Anne and Kubisch, Karolin}, title = {The German Generations and Gender Survey: Some Critical Reflections on the Validity of Fertility Histories}, series = {Comparative Population Studies}, volume = {38}, journal = {Comparative Population Studies}, number = {1}, publisher = {Bundesinstitut f{\"u}r Bev{\"o}lkerungsforschung}, address = {Wiesbaden}, issn = {1869-8999}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b1570-opus4-8508}, pages = {3 -- 28}, abstract = {This paper validates the fertility histories of the German Generations and Gender Survey (GGS). Focusing on the cohorts 1930-69 of West German women, the total number of children, the parity distribution and the parity progression ratios are compared to external sources. One major result from this validation is that the German GGS understates the fertility for the older cohorts and overstates it for the younger ones. We presume that two mechanisms are responsible for this pattern in the German GGS: On the one hand, children who have left parental home are underreported in the retrospective fertility histories. On the other hand, women with small children are easier to reach by the interviewer. These two mechanisms taken together produce too low numbers of children for the older and too high ones for the younger cohorts. Extending the validation to marital histories has revealed a similar bias. Our general conclusion from this investigation is that the German GGS may not be used for statistical analyses of cohort fertility and marriage trends. For subsequent surveys, we suggest integrating simple control questions in questionnaires with complex retrospective fertility and union histories.}, language = {en} } @techreport{KreyenfeldPerelliHarrisKubisch, type = {Working Paper}, author = {Kreyenfeld, Michaela and Perelli-Harris, Brienna and Kubisch, Karolin}, title = {Harmonized histories : Manual for the preparation of comparative fertility and union histories}, series = {MPIDR Working Paper (No. 11/2010)}, journal = {MPIDR Working Paper (No. 11/2010)}, publisher = {Max-Planck Institut f{\"u}r demografische Forschung}, address = {Rostock}, pages = {32}, abstract = {This document describes the standardization process of the Harmonized Histories. The Harmonized Histories is a comparative database of rich reproductive and union histories from surveys conducted in a number of countries in Europe. Given that birth and union data has been collected in a number of ways in different surveys, it has been very difficult to conduct cross-national analyses of recent union and fertility behavior over time. A team of researchers called the Nonmarital Childbearing Network has cleaned and standardized the surveys according to guidelines set out in this manual. Currently, the database includes data from the Generations and Gender Surveys (GGSs) in Italy, Germany, France, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Russia; the 2003 Dutch Fertility and Family Survey; and the British Household Panel Survey.}, language = {en} } @techreport{KreyenfeldPoetzschKubisch, type = {Working Paper}, author = {Kreyenfeld, Michaela and P{\"o}tzsch, Olga and Kubisch, Karolin}, title = {The Human Fertility Database Documentation: Germany}, editor = {Kreyenfeld, Michaela}, publisher = {humanfertility.org}, pages = {14}, language = {en} }