Influence of GDR identification before German reunification on political support 20 years later

Publikation: Beitrag in Buch/Konferenzbericht/Sammelband/GutachtenBeitrag in Buch/Sammelband/GutachtenBeigetragenBegutachtung

Beitragende

  • Kristine Khachatryan - , Universitätsmedizin Mainz (Autor:in)
  • Manfred E. Beutel - , Universitätsmedizin Mainz (Autor:in)
  • Yve Stöbel-Richter - , Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences (Autor:in)
  • Markus Zenger - , Hochschule Magdeburg-Stendal, Universitätsklinikum Leipzig (Autor:in)
  • Hendrik Berth - , Psychosoziale Medizin und Entwicklungsneurowissenschaften (Autor:in)
  • Elmar Brähler - , Universität Leipzig, Universitätsmedizin Mainz (Autor:in)

Abstract

Even 30 years after the reunification of the two German states, skepticism often occurs in public discussions about the formation of a common democratic culture in Germany. The success of the right-wing populist party Alternative for Germany (AfD) in East Germany and an East-West gap in terms of right-wing violence seem to support these opinions. The data of the Saxon Longitudinal Study (SLS) provides a unique opportunity to check the assumption that a strong identification with the German Democratic Republic (GDR) during the existence of the socialist system explains East German support for the democratic political system even several years after reunification. In this study, political support was measured following the concept of David Easton. The measurement structures of diffuse and specific support were examined with confirmatory factor analyses and hypotheses were tested via structural equation models. This study used the first three waves of the SLS that took place before reunification (1987 to 1989) to measure respondents’ identification with the GDR and the 23rd wave to measure political support in 2009. The results show that two decades after reunification, effects of identification with the GDR can only be found in terms of specific political support.

Details

OriginalspracheEnglisch
TitelThirty Years After the Berlin Wall
Redakteure/-innenAyline Heller, Peter Schmidt
ErscheinungsortLondon
Herausgeber (Verlag)Routledge, London
Kapitel5
Seiten103-124
Seitenumfang22
ISBN (elektronisch)9781040027820
PublikationsstatusVeröffentlicht - 20 März 2024
Peer-Review-StatusJa

Externe IDs

unpaywall 10.4324/9781003427469-7
Scopus 85194309045