She leaves, he stays? Sex-selective migration in rural East Germany

Rural regions in East Germany have been characterized by strong age- and sex-selective outmigration since 1990, which has resulted in unbalanced sex ratios in the age group 18-35 with pronounced surpluses of men. The East German countryside is unique in Europe in two respects: (1) the spatial and numerical extent of the overrepresentation of young men and (2) the missing equalization of sex ratio imbalances for groups in the age of forming a family. An analysis of statistical data shows that structural conditions, especially the situation on the labor market are important determinants of unbalanced sex ratios and sex-selective migration. However, in order to understand why rural East Germany stands out with an especially high surplus of young men, it is necessary to take the specific historical context - the legacy of the German Democratic Republic and the gendered and economic consequences of unification into account, notably the continuously high work orientation of East German women in an economically difficult environment.