Katharina Spieß

Prof. Dr. Katharina Spieß serves as Director of the Federal Institute for Population Research (BiB), Germany's central federal demographic research institution under the Federal Ministry of Family Affairs. She leads national and international research initiatives focused on population dynamics, family policy, and migration.

Her research centers on migration and refugee integration, particularly examining maternity care access for forced migrant women and early childhood education for migrant backgrounds. She investigates family policy effectiveness through projects like FReDA (German Family Demography Panel Study) and the Generations and Gender Survey, analyzing how report card formats influence parental perceptions of children's academic skills. Current work includes the "Growing Up in Digital Europe" preparatory phase and cost-benefit analyses of early childhood development programs.

Her recent publications reveal strong thematic clustering in migration health disparities (maternity care exclusion), methodological innovations in refugee panel surveys, and comparative European fertility patterns influenced by economic conditions. These works demonstrate interdisciplinary approaches bridging public health, survey methodology, and demographic economics.

As Director, she oversees major national infrastructure including FReDA (integrating Generations and Gender Survey and pairfam), the German Emigration and Remigration Panel Study (GERPS), and the Transitions and Old Age Potential (TOP) survey. Key current projects include "Refugees from Ukraine in Germany" and "Forced Migration and Transnational Family Arrangements" (TransFAR).