Research Projects

Fields of Education as New Drivers of Health Inequalities (FIELDS)

Project lead: Prof. Dr. Marvin Reuter

Funding: European Research Council (ERC Starting Grant)
Funding amount: €1,498,715
Project period: 01/2027–12/2031

Education is one of the most important social determinants of health. While it is well established that people with higher levels of education live longer and healthier lives, little is known about the importance of the field of education. This research project addresses this gap by examining how study majors and vocational training programs shape physical and mental health across the life course. In doing so, the project extends research on health inequalities by introducing a largely overlooked horizontal dimension.

FIELDS investigates three key mechanisms through which study majors and vocational training programs may be linked to health in adulthood. First, they open up specific occupational opportunities and are associated with particular working and employment conditions. Second, they may shape health-related knowledge, attitudes and behaviours. Third, they may influence the size and quality of social networks that develop during education and training and later in working life.

Empirically, the project draws on six large longitudinal studies from Germany (SOEP), the United States (PSID), the Netherlands (LISS), Switzerland (SHP), South Korea (KLIPS) and Australia (HILDA), comprising more than 2.3 million observations in total. The data are systematically harmonised and analysed using modern methods of longitudinal analysis. This allows FIELDS to examine how health differences between fields of education develop across different stages of life and the extent to which they are explained by working conditions, health behaviours and social relationships.

Occupational Epidemiological Analyses of Selected Infectious Diseases Based on Longitudinal Data from the German National Cohort (NAKO) (BAuA F2597)

Project lead: Prof. Dr. Marvin Reuter
Project coordination and research: Katharina Heger, M.A.

Commissioning body: Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (BAuA)
Funding amount: €545,714
Project period: 09/2025–06/2028
Project partners: Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, TU Dresden

Despite advances in medicine and improvements in workplace hygiene and protective measures, infectious diseases continue to have major health and economic implications. The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated this particularly clearly. At the same time, comparatively little research has examined how infection risks are distributed across modern workplaces and which groups of workers are particularly affected. Using longitudinal data from the German National Cohort (NAKO), the project aims to identify and systematically investigate occupational inequalities in infection risks among the German working population. Particular attention is given to previously under-researched risk groups and social inequalities in the occurrence of infections. The analyses cover infections of the upper and lower respiratory tract, gastrointestinal infections and selected less common diseases such as tuberculosis, HIV and hepatitis B or C. The findings are intended to contribute to the further development of occupational infection prevention and to identify potential approaches for preventive action.