Working in East German Socialism in 1980 and in Capitalism 15 Years Later: A Trend Analysis of a Transitional Economy's Working Conditions

Many studies document the changes that have taken place in the new German states, the former German Democratic Republic (GDR), since the end of socialism. Most research looks at the changes that took place after the unification of East and West Germany, but little is known about the differences between the present, somewhat settled situation in the new German states and the stable situation in the GDR before the system change.
The goal of this study was to enlarge our knowledge on these differences. With a trend analysis, aspects of work in the GDR in 1980 ( n =337) were compared with the new German states in 1995 ( n =168). Results showed that there was more job control and complexity, more activity in work improvement and better work organisation in the new German states than in the GDR. There was no difference in stress variables and social support by colleagues between both groups. Relationships with supervisors and appreciation for suggestions for work improvement were better in the GDR than after the introduction of capitalism.