The Multilinks Database

Welcome to the Multilinks Database on Intergenerational Policy Indicators. The database provides a set of indicators for social policies (childcare, family benefits, long-term care, and pensions) and legal frameworks (maintenance obligations) in the 27 European Union member states as of 2011 as well as in Georgia, Norway and Russia for the years 2004 (GGS wave 1) and 2009 (GGS wave 2).
The objective is to give empirical information on how each state defines, regulates and supports responsibilities between generations. The structure of the database is built on a conceptual report which addresses how intergenerational relations are embedded in institutional contexts and how public policies, including legislation, allocate public and private responsibilities.
The database includes information on four domains:

a) Responsibilities to care for children

b) Responsibilities to provide financial support for children

c) Responsibilities to care for people in need of care

d) Responsibilities to provide financial support for elderly people

The database can be used free of charge and downloaded from the links below. If you use the Multilinks Database for research, please cite the database in the following manner:

Multilinks (2011). Multilinks Database on Intergenerational Policy Indicators. Version 2.0, Multilinks Project and Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung (WZB), http://multilinks-database.wzb.eu [access date].

Download Multilinks Database

Documentation

• Conceptual Report
• Methodological Report
• Version Report
• Codebook

The research leading to these results has received funding from the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme [FP7/2007-2011] under grant agreement no. 217523 for the project MULTILINKS (How demographic changes shape intergenerational solidarity, well-being, and social integration: A Multilinks framework).

The concept and structure of the database were developed by Wolfgang Keck and Chiara Saraceno at the time at the Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung (WZB). Data collection has been organized by the WZB team and by Alan Puur and Lule Sakeus of the Estonian Interuniversity Population Research Centre (EKDK) in Tallinn. Data have been collected from national and international providers of statistics as well as from a network of national experts. The national experts completed a questionnaire on legal regulations and social policy measures in their countries and reported on policy changes since 2004. The following national experts contributed to the database:

Data harmonization was carried out by Maria Degenstein, Philipp Hessel and Wolfgang Keck of the WZB. Technical implementation is provided by Mathijs van Wingerden (De Eindbaas); and Niels Schenk (Erasmus University in Rotterdam). The Multilinks team is very grateful to all persons who have contributed to the database.