FReDA – The German Family Demography Panel Study | 02.06.2025Data Release: FReDA publishes third wave

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FReDA now offers up-to-date data from seven sub-surveys (W1R, W1A, W1B, W2A, W2B, W3A, W3B) and thus also enables longitudinal analyses. The additional questioning of partners also makes dyadic analyses possible. The complete data set of the third survey (W3A and W3B) is now available to researchers and can be requested via GESIS.

Detailed information on the data release of the third wave of FReDA can be found in the FReDA Field Report.

Data from more than 21,000 interviews

In sub-waves 3A and 3B of the study, more than 21,000 interviews with anchor persons were conducted in each wave. In both sub-waves, the gender distribution was similar: around 43 percent men, 56 percent women, and approximately 0.3 percent stated that they were diverse. The average age was also nearly identical in both surveys, at around 36 years.

Participation via smartphone was particularly widespread: almost two-thirds of panel participants chose this option – 60.4 percent in W3A and 62.4 percent in W3B.

New question modules added

Up to 560 different items were surveyed in sub-wave W3A, and as many as 585 items in W3B. With its extensive catalogue of questions, the FReDA data set enables representative analyses of the situation and changes in family life, including family forms, family dynamics, fertility, parenthood, socialisation, as well as separation and divorce in the context of, for example, the labour market, mobility and health. In addition, some new question modules have been added with the release of wave 3. These include, among others:

• Emotional insecurity in the partnership
• Demands on parenting
• Attitudes towards gender roles in the context of parenthood

The new data make it possible to observe developments in the respondents’ family environment even more precisely – for example in partnerships (e.g. moving in together, marriage, separation), starting a family (e.g. number of children) or career changes. The extensive data from FReDA allows for a great deal of differentiation and promises exciting analyses.

Open modules also surveyed

The third wave also includes data from the open modules that were submitted by researchers to FReDA and surveyed in autumn 2023 (wave 3B). These are questions on four topics:

• Uncertainties and resilience
  Prof. Dr. Gunnar Andersson and Prof. Dr. Gerda Neyer (Stockholm University, Sweden)
• Demographic change and political behaviour
  Prof. Dr. Dr. Anette Eva Fasang and Prof. Dr. Heike Klüver (Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany)
• Sexual satisfaction and justice in couple relationships
  Prof. Dr. Nicola Döring (Ilmenau University of Technology, Germany) and Prof. Dr. Peer Briken (University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, Germany)
• What do we eat today? Eating styles in family and couple relationships
  Prof. Dr. Jutta Mata, Vanessa Knobl and Ira Herwig (Universität Mannheim, Germany)

pairfam sample is part of the surveys

Since 2022, pairfam (Panel Analysis of Intimate Relationships and Family Dynamics) has been part of FReDA. Research based on pairfam data can be seamlessly continued using the FReDA data set, as many questions and scales have been adopted or adapted from pairfam. This allows for analyses combining pairfam data (up to 2022) with FReDA data (from 2022 onwards).

The panel data will thus continue to grow and remain available for long-term analyses. The substantive focus on partnership and family life is maintained, and there is significant overlap in survey instruments. Thanks to FReDA’s multi-actor design, dyadic analyses remain possible for the pairfam sample and other FReDA respondents alike.

FReDA Data Portal open for research

With the release of the third wave, FReDA provides the scientific community with a very comprehensive and versatile dataset. The FReDA Data Portal is freely accessible and invites researchers to explore the panel study in more detail.