Can voluntary adult education reduce unemployment? Causal evidence from East Germany after reunification
Abstract After the German reunification in 1990, East Germany transitioned from a centrally planned economic system to a market economy. To tackle surging unemployment, upskilling through adult education was deemed essential at the time. Besides substantial mandatory training programs provided by ac...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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SpringerOpen
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Journal for Labour Market Research |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12651-024-00379-6 |
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| author | Li Kathrin Kaja Rupieper Stephan L. Thomsen |
| author_facet | Li Kathrin Kaja Rupieper Stephan L. Thomsen |
| author_sort | Li Kathrin Kaja Rupieper |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract After the German reunification in 1990, East Germany transitioned from a centrally planned economic system to a market economy. To tackle surging unemployment, upskilling through adult education was deemed essential at the time. Besides substantial mandatory training programs provided by active labor market policies, Volkshochschulen (VHS) were the most important providers of voluntary adult education. Based on newly digitized data, we estimate how VHS courses affected unemployment in a county-level analysis of East Germany between 1991 and 2002. Our identification strategy employs the decentralized expansion of courses, which led to substantial, quasi-random variation in their regional supply. We do not find any significant effects of VHS courses on subsequent unemployment. Lacking labor demand and low market dynamics may have restricted the realization of education effects. Regional disparities support this notion: In counties bordering West Germany, courses reduced unemployment. Our results hint towards multiple mechanisms at play, as both work-related and recreational courses were found to be effective in border counties. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c514e89d45814f45a11821ea36aa7745 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2510-5027 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | SpringerOpen |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal for Labour Market Research |
| spelling | doaj-art-c514e89d45814f45a11821ea36aa77452025-01-19T12:13:24ZengSpringerOpenJournal for Labour Market Research2510-50272025-01-0159113410.1186/s12651-024-00379-6Can voluntary adult education reduce unemployment? Causal evidence from East Germany after reunificationLi Kathrin Kaja Rupieper0Stephan L. Thomsen1Leibniz University HannoverLeibniz University HannoverAbstract After the German reunification in 1990, East Germany transitioned from a centrally planned economic system to a market economy. To tackle surging unemployment, upskilling through adult education was deemed essential at the time. Besides substantial mandatory training programs provided by active labor market policies, Volkshochschulen (VHS) were the most important providers of voluntary adult education. Based on newly digitized data, we estimate how VHS courses affected unemployment in a county-level analysis of East Germany between 1991 and 2002. Our identification strategy employs the decentralized expansion of courses, which led to substantial, quasi-random variation in their regional supply. We do not find any significant effects of VHS courses on subsequent unemployment. Lacking labor demand and low market dynamics may have restricted the realization of education effects. Regional disparities support this notion: In counties bordering West Germany, courses reduced unemployment. Our results hint towards multiple mechanisms at play, as both work-related and recreational courses were found to be effective in border counties.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12651-024-00379-6UnemploymentAdult educationNon-formal educationVolkshochschuleEast Germany |
| spellingShingle | Li Kathrin Kaja Rupieper Stephan L. Thomsen Can voluntary adult education reduce unemployment? Causal evidence from East Germany after reunification Journal for Labour Market Research Unemployment Adult education Non-formal education Volkshochschule East Germany |
| title | Can voluntary adult education reduce unemployment? Causal evidence from East Germany after reunification |
| title_full | Can voluntary adult education reduce unemployment? Causal evidence from East Germany after reunification |
| title_fullStr | Can voluntary adult education reduce unemployment? Causal evidence from East Germany after reunification |
| title_full_unstemmed | Can voluntary adult education reduce unemployment? Causal evidence from East Germany after reunification |
| title_short | Can voluntary adult education reduce unemployment? Causal evidence from East Germany after reunification |
| title_sort | can voluntary adult education reduce unemployment causal evidence from east germany after reunification |
| topic | Unemployment Adult education Non-formal education Volkshochschule East Germany |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12651-024-00379-6 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT likathrinkajarupieper canvoluntaryadulteducationreduceunemploymentcausalevidencefromeastgermanyafterreunification AT stephanlthomsen canvoluntaryadulteducationreduceunemploymentcausalevidencefromeastgermanyafterreunification |