Expertise

Family Affairs, Children & Youth

Targeted support for families

Around eight million families with underage children live in Germany. These families play a key role in our society. The task of family policy is therefore to support families as individually accurate as possible – according to the families’ needs and capabilities.

Objectives of family policy

Family policy pursues various objectives: ensuring the economic stability of families; supporting the well-being of children; promoting a fair division of tasks between parents.

Another central objective is to improve the compatibility of work and family life. Compatibility between these spheres of life enables parents to pursue their careers while at the same time spending time with the family – which also has a positive impact on other objectives of family policy.

At the federal, state and local levels, these goals are pursued with different instruments: Among the best known are child allowance, parental leave and parental leave allowance. In addition to these monetary benefits, several different infrastructures exist for families in Germany. These include, for example, family education and family counselling; they strengthen and support families and have a preventive effect.

Prevention-oriented social and family policy invests in children and their families at an early stage and is sensitive to their individual and societal prospects.

Early education: fundamental contribution to equal opportunities for children and their families

Child day care contributes to laying the foundation for subsequent educational and career paths. It supports families in their educational and child-rearing responsibilities and facilitates the work-family balance. This requires high-quality childcare services that meet the needs of the children as well as a sufficient supply of skilled workers. This way, our entire society benefits from child- and family-friendly, reliable childcare services.

The role of employers and businesses in family policy

Aside from the state, employers play a key role in family policy. With a family-conscious human resource policy, they can support the compatibility of family and work – for instance, by providing flexible working hours or remote work facilities. The result is not only more satisfied employees; it also helps organizations to recruit and hold on to skilled workers, ultimately ensuring better economic outcomes.

Family Affairs, Children & Youth : A selection of our services

Data Analyses

We evaluate official statistics and representative data sets to ensure a reliable basis for political decisions. In Germany, the Micro Census and the Socio Economic Panel (SOEP) are proven starting points for our analyses.

Micro Simulation Model

We use our Micro Simulation Model to illustrate the economic effects of changes in tax and transfer systems on different family types.

Data Gathering

We use data gathered by ourselves to provide insight into issues of family policy. We carry out surveys of families, businesses, youth welfare offices and other stakeholders of family policy.

Evaluations

We regularly evaluate different measures of family policy, federal and regional family political programs – using the quantitative and qualitative methods of empirical social research.  

Modelling of Skilled Labour Development

Skill development in early childhood education: Based on our own model, we show how the main determinants of supply and demand of skilled labour will evolve in the medium term.

Cost & return analyses

We analyse financial models for services of public interest with regard to their adequacy and calculate the costs and returns of innovations in the system.

 

Our work on this topic

Take a look at our latest projects and activities.

Inflation – extra burden and relief for family households

2022
| Project

Calculations on inflation-related additional private household expenditure and the work of the Federal Government's relief package.

No generational conflict: Young and old are primarily looking for security.

2022
| Project

Study compares “boomers” and Generation Z: high need for security for young and old alike.

The situation of single or separated parents

2021
| Project

The 43rd Family Research Monitor presents new figures, facts and study results on the situation of single and separated parents in Germany.

Learning from the Corona crisis

2021
| Project

Experiences and new impulses for company reconciliation policy.

Services for families in Germany

2021
| Project

Family education and family counselling facilities in Germany have a wide reach and support people in different social situations. This is shown in a study for the BMFSFJ.

ZDF Germany Study 2019

2019
| Project

On behalf of ZDF, we examined the external living conditions for families and senior citizens in Germany's 401 districts and independent cities.

Care Perspective. Reorientation of the elderly care profession

2019
| Project

The annual expenditure of social long-term care insurance will continue to increase in the coming decades according to the results of a Prognos study for the Bertelsmann Foundation.

ZDF Germany Study 2018

2018
| Project

Where is the best place to live in Germany? Prognos investigated this question on behalf of ZDFzeit.

Learning from the world: handling of cultural diversity

2018
| Project

How can living together in cultural diversity succeed? On the occasion of the award of the Reinhard Mohn Prize 2018, Prognos was commissioned by the Bertelsmann Stiftung to conduct international good-practice research on this question.

Society 5.0

2018
| Project

Implications of digitalisation for areas of life like work, health and mobility – that is the topic of “Society 5.0,” the short study carried out by Capgemini and Prognos.

Do you have questions?

Your contact at Prognos

Dr David Juncke

Vice-Director, Head of Family Policy

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Dr Dagmar Weßler-Poßberg

Vice-Director, Head of Social Policy

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About us

Prognos – Providing Orientation.

Prognos is one of the oldest economic research centres in Europe. Founded at the University of Basel, Prognos experts have been conducting research for a wide range of clients from the public and private sectors since 1959 – politically independent, scientifically sound.

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