Martin Neugebauer

Markets and Mobility: How Employers Structure Economic Opportunity

Intergenerational mobility, measuring the ability to achieve economic success regardless of family background, is a critical reflection of a society’s commitment to equality of opportunity. Rising income inequality has raised concerns about the potential erosion of upward mobility. While education has traditionally been viewed as the path to mobility, its transformative power is facing challenges in a rapidly evolving job market. This project reorients the focus of intergenerational mobility research by highlighting the labor market as an arena for the reproduction of advantage. It employs a comparative approach, using administrative data from four countries: Sweden, Austria, England, and the United States. It also incorporates evidence from a broader set of nations through cross-national surveys, longitudinal household surveys, labor force surveys, secondary data, and digital trace data. The project employs cutting-edge empirical methods, including quasi- experimental designs, event studies, within-family comparisons, decomposition analyses, counterfactual simulations, and diagnostic checks to rigorously assess the extent of inequalities in the labor market. The research investigates how family background influences the sorting of individuals to employers and workplaces, accounting for education and occupation, and explores variations in career progression within and between employers. It comprehensively catalogues and assesses mechanisms shaping workplace inequality, contributing to the development of social closure theory. Additionally, the project evaluates intervention strategies, encompassing both employer practices and government actions, to promote fair opportunity in the labor market.

JOB! I'm hiring a postdoc for 2 years on my ERC MaMo project.

Looking for someone with strong quant methods, ongoing work close to the project's aims, and a desire to publish in sociology. Start flexible in the next 12 months.

Formal call out shortly, but contact me first.

Call for Papers! Bewerbt euch für unsere Sektionsveranstaltungen auf dem 43. DGS-Kongress in Mainz (28.09–02.10.2026):

📌 Aktuelle bildungssoziologische Forschungsprojekte
📌 Zukünfte von Bildung und Bildungssystemen

🗓️ Abstract Deadline: 31.03.2026
ℹ️ Mehr Infos: bildungssoziologie.de

#DGS2026

Some quick takeaways from this session on my experience editing sociology journals, what drives decisions, what reviewers actually do, and what authors should know.

The Conference Addressing Social Inequalities in the Global North and South On behalf of the Organising Committee, it is an honour to welcome you to the RC28 Spring Meeting 2026. This academic meeting is proposed a...

See you in Sevilla!

RC28 conference, 20-22 May 2026
Deadline for abstracts: 1st of December

eventos.upo.es/137585/secti...

Call for Papers: Bildung in der digitalen Gesellschaft erforschen: Theoretische, methodische und methodologische Perspektiven #cfp #soziologie

Check out the #LINEup Education Data Explorer — a new open-source map of longitudinal datasets across Europe! 🇪🇺
→ Explore what data exist, where, and on what topics.
Great tool for comparative education research www.lineup-project.eu/map/

Deutscher Schulpreis 2025: Das sind die besten Schulen Sechs Schulen gewinnen den Deutschen Schulpreis 2025. Den mit 100.000 Euro dotierten Hauptpreis erhält die Maria-Leo-Grundschule in Berlin.

#DeutscherSchulpreis 2025: Das sind die Preisträger:
- Maria-Leo-Grundschule in Berlin
- Deutsche Internationale Schule Tbilissi (Georgien)
- Ev. Gesamtschule Gelsenkirchen-Bismarck (NRW)
- Jenaplanschule Weimar
deutsches-schulportal.de/schulkultur/...
#Schule #BlueLZ #Schulleitung

Interesse an Hochschulforschung? Neues umfangreiches Handbuch bei @nomosverlag.bsky.social – ich selbst durfte etwas zum Thema "Studienabbruch" beitragen #open_access doi.org/10.5771/9783...

Teacher bias or unobserved ability? @ssreditorial.bsky.social paper w/ @marespadafor.bsky.social Test score error & omitted behavior = 🐘 in the (class)room to identify SES discrimination. Still, beyond "true ability", well-off (low-performing) kids get higher teacher ratings: doi.org/10.1016/j.ss...

Pressemitteilung des Ausschusses "Soziologie in Schule und Lehre" https://soziologie.de/aktuell/meldungen-des-vorstands/news/pressemitteilung-des-ausschusses-soziologie-in-schule-und-lehre Schulen stehen angesichts multipler gesellschaftlicher Krisen wie Klimawandel, sozialer Ungleichheit und […]

Job! Two assistant/associate professors in educational sociology with a quantitative methods focus based either in Copenhagen or Aarhus
dpu.au.dk/om-dpu/ledig...

Testing the Psychological Costs of Intergenerational Social Mobility: Evidence from a German Panel Study This study investigates the psychological costs of intergenerational social mobility, focusing on both upward and downward mobility. While prior resea…

New paper in Social Science & Medicine: We test the psychological costs of intergenerational social mobility using German panel data. Findings suggest costs stem from pre-existing vulnerabilities, not mobility itself. Read: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Welche Folgen hat ein Studienabbruch? Ein Gastbeitrag zu unseren Forschungsergebnissen

🧠🎓 Signal or substance?
What do employers really see in a university degree?
Our new paper in @europeansocreview.bsky.social dives into “sheepskin effects” using a factorial survey experiment.
With @jpheisig.bsky.social & @thijsbol.bsky.social. academic.oup.com/esr/advance-...

LINEup Project, mind the gap: a school’s perspective on Educational Inequality YouTube video by LINEup Project

Have you heard about our @horizoneu.bsky.social project LINEup? We're using longitudinal data to better understand and reduce educational inequalities www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E9u...

Wir wollten mal kurz Hallo sagen! 👋 Seit Sommer 2024 steuern diese sieben Köpfe die Sektion Bildung & Erziehung der DGS. @oliverwinkler.bsky.social @janaheinz.bsky.social @jannateltemann.bsky.social @mariakeil.bsky.social @neugebauer.bsky.social Angela Graf @bidt.bsky.social und Mona Granato @BIBB

Great to see this out! Counseling in GER boosts HE enrollment for low-SES students—while surpr. reducing it for high-SES youth. The result? A substantial narrowing of the SES gap.
Congrats to my colleagues from @wzb.bsky.social & @unicologne.bsky.social👇
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

Lesen. Schreiben. Rechnen. Denken!
#Medienkompetenz ist die 4. #Kulturtechnik. Doch ihre Vermittlung wird behandelt wie ein freiwilliger Kurs in "digitaler Gartenpflege". Plädoyer für eine neue #Bildungspolitik, die #Demokratie schützt. Von A. Sängerlaub. Im Blog: www.jmwiarda.de/2025/04/01/l...

Intrinsic and extrinsic motives of undergraduate students for pursuing a master’s degree: Applying the Eccles et al. expectancy-value model This study investigates the factors driving students to pursue a master’s degree, taking into account the mediating role of ability beliefs in this decision-making process. Previous research has prima...

Our new paper led by my former colleagues from FUB: What drives students to pursue a master’s degree?
🔍 Expectations of success matter most (β = .42). Based on Eccles’ expectancy-value model – worth a read!
#HigherEd #EdResearch #AcademicTransitions journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...

Eine gute Übersicht. Leseempfehlung

KONTEXT Grundschule

Grundschullehrkräfte gesucht! Das Projekt "KONTEXT Grundschule" möchte ein digitales Informationsangebot für Grundschullehrkräfte schaffen. Dafür werden Lehrkräfte gesucht, die Interesse daran haben, ihre Expertise aus der Schulpraxis einzubringen.
www.dipf.de/de/dipf-aktu...

Neuer Ort, gleiche gute Diskussionen! 🎓📢 Die Sektion Bildung & Erziehung der DGS ist jetzt auf Bluesky. Weil Bildung Zukunft ist – und die Zukunft nicht bei X liegt 😉 Folgt uns für Debatten, Calls & Vernetzung rund um die Bildungssoziologie #Bildung #Soziologie #WirSindHier

CfP Bildung und Betrieb in der Transformation? Gemeinsame Tagung der DGS-Sektionen „Bildung und Erziehung“, „Arbeits- und Industriesoziologie“ und des BIBB am 6.-7.11. am BIBB. Call: sociohub-fid.de/file/file/do...

🎓📉 College non-completion can leave lasting scars on well-being, including self-esteem, life satisfaction, fear of failure, and mental health. Explore our findings in SSR 🔗 doi.org/10.1016/j.ss... #HigherEd #MentalHealth

COMMENT: Pickett, Invalidating Factorial Survey Experiments Using Invalid Comparisons Is Bad Practice https://doi.org/10.15195/v12.a5
REJOINDER: Forster and Neugebauer, "Validating Factorial Survey Experiments: Response to Comment" https://doi.org/10.15195/v12.a6

Can we please decide where to do this now and then all go to ONE platform #academicbubble?

Congratulations, Benita! Reading this helps me combAt negative trumpesque putinesque thoughts. At least a little bit ☺️

New Publication with @neugebauer.bsky.social in Sociological Science! Factorial surveys are widely used to predict real-world decisions, but are they valid? Our results raise concerns when it comes to predicting real-world decisions from factorial survey responses (1)

🎉 Some professional news 🎉: I am very happy to share that I have been appointed Full Professor of Sociology of Education at Karlsruhe University of Education.

#EconSky, #Sociology, #SocialScience

📢 Submissions are open for the 6th "Higher Education and the Labour Market” (HELM) jointly organised by DZHW and IAB!

Deadline: April 8, 2024!

Details here: www.dzhw.eu/veranstaltun...

@ordemannjessica.bsky.social @fpeter.bsky.social