Who Starts a Business and Who is Self-Employed in Germany

52 Pages Posted: 17 Feb 2012

See all articles by Michael Fritsch

Michael Fritsch

Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena - School of Economics and Business Administration

Alexander Kritikos

Europa-Universitaet Viadrina - Fakultat fur Wirtschaftswissenschaften; German Institute for Economic Research (DIW Berlin); IZA Institute of Labor Economics

Alina Rusakova

Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: January 1, 2012

Abstract

Based on representative data, the German Micro-Census, we provide an overview of the development of self-employment and entrepreneurship in Germany between 1991 and 2010, the first two decades after reunification. We investigate the socioeconomic background of these individuals, their education, previous employment status, and their income level. We observe a unique increase in self-employment in Germany by 40 percent which can partly be attributed to the transformation process of East Germany and to the shift to the service sector. We notice a yearly start-up rate of 1 percent among the working population (almost 20 percent of them being restarters), a decision that pays for the majority of individuals in terms of income. Contrary to other countries, in Germany there is a positive relationship between educational levels and the probability of starting a business.

Keywords: Entrepreneurship, self-employment, start-ups, Germany

JEL Classification: L26, D22

Suggested Citation

Fritsch, Michael and Kritikos, Alexander S. and Rusakova, Alina, Who Starts a Business and Who is Self-Employed in Germany (January 1, 2012). DIW Berlin Discussion Paper No. 1184, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2006494 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2006494

Michael Fritsch

Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena - School of Economics and Business Administration ( email )

Carl-Zeiss-Str. 3
D-07743 Jena
Germany

Alexander S. Kritikos (Contact Author)

Europa-Universitaet Viadrina - Fakultat fur Wirtschaftswissenschaften ( email )

15230 Frankfurt (Oder)
Germany

German Institute for Economic Research (DIW Berlin) ( email )

Mohrenstraße 58
Berlin, 10117
Germany

IZA Institute of Labor Economics

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

Alina Rusakova

Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena ( email )

Furstengraben 1
Jena, Thuringa 07743
Germany

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