MEMO Studies

STUDY

Call to remember MEMO-Study 2025

With the MEMO study series, the Institute for Interdisciplinary Research on Conflict and Violence (IKG) from the University Bielefeld, in cooperation with the Foundation EVZ, is researching the current state of critical historical awareness in Germany. The aim is to empirically document the culture of remembrance in the form of a representative opinion poll.
The participants of the Gedenkanstoß [Call to remember]-MEMO study (2025), which was published as part of the Gedenkanstoß [Call to remember] project of the Education Agenda NS-Injustice, were asked about their knowledge, attitudes and previous points of contact with regard to Nazi history.

Leon Walter, Jonas Rees, Jonathan Pimpl & Michael Papendick; Institute for interdisciplinary Research on Conflict and Violence (IKG); University Bielefeld
Berlin, Bielefeld 2025
74 Pages
Language: English

Call to remember MEMO Study english (Second Edition) (PDF, 3 MB)

STUDY PROJECT PARTNERS

MEMO Germany – Youth Study 2023

How, what and in what ways do young people in Germany remember National Socialism? How do they perceive discrimination and remembrance culture today? The MEMO Youth Study 2023, conducted by Bielefeld University and funded by the EVZ Foundation, extends the previous five MEMO surveys (2018-2022) by the focus group young adults. National Socialism and World War II are central reference points in Germany's culture of remembrance for adolescents and young adults. All results of the study as well as accompanying material are available here.

Michael Papendick, Jonas Rees, Maren Scholz & Andreas Zick / Institut für interdisziplinäre Konflikt- und Gewaltforschung (IKG) Universität Bielefeld
Berlin, Bielefeld 2022
33 Pages
Language: German, English

MEMO Youth Study 2023 (PDF, 3 MB)

STUDY PROJECT PARTNERS

MEMO Germany – MEMO Multidimensional Remembrance Monitor - STUDY V

Germans' memories of World War II are centered on events and places in Western Europe. This is a result of MEMO - the Multidimensional Remembrance Monitor. The fifth study on German culture of remembrance shows that 58.5% of the 1,000 representative respondents have never visited a place of remembrance of World War II and its victims located outside of Germany intentionally. Those who visited a memorial site outside Germa-ny most often refer to France, and there to the warfare and the war graves in Normandy.

Michael Papendick, Jonas Rees, Maren Scholz & Andreas Zick / Institut für interdisziplinäre Konflikt- und Gewaltforschung (IKG) Universität Bielefeld
Berlin, Bielefeld 2022
33 Pages
Language: German, English

MEMO V study (PDF, 4 MB)

Study

MEMO Germany – Multidimensional Remembrance Monitor IV

The fourth MEMO study provides analyses of digital educational resources on the topic of National Socialism, on nuanced understanding of the diversity of victim groups, and on the extent of Nazi forced labor. Once again, respondents assess the role of the German population during the Nazi era. The study analyzes continuities from the Nazi era, conspiracy narratives, the COVID-19 pandemic, and incidents related to Nazism in recent German history. Finally, it examines the effects that engaging with the Nazi era has had on the respondents themselves. As in previous studies, experts discussed the results. Their assessments of individual aspects are presented as quotes throughout the study.

[Translate to Englisch:] Michael Papendick, Jonas Rees, Maren Scholz, Andreas Zick / Institut für interdisziplinäre Konflikt- und Gewaltforschung (IKG), Universität Bielefeld
Berlin, Bielefeld 2021
48 Pages
Language: German, English

[Translate to Englisch:] MEMO Studie III

Study

MEMO Germany – Multidimensional Remembrance Monitor III

With "MEMO Germany - Multidimensional Remembrance Monitor", the Institute for Interdisciplinary Research on Conflict and Violence Bielefeld (IKG) has been researching since 2018 what, how and for what citizens of Germany historically remember. The aim is an empirical documentation of the culture of remembrance prevailing in Germany, recorded in the form of a representative opinion survey addressed to a cross-section of the population. One particular focus is on remembering the Shoah and the persecution, eviction and extermination of individual people and groups of people during the National Socialist era.

EVZ Foundation
Berlin 2020
43 Pages
Language: English, German, Russian

MEMO study III (2020) (PDF, 420 KB)

Study

MEMO Germany– Multidimensional Remembrance Monitor II

The present study MEMO II was conducted in November and December 2018 after a critical reflection of the results with experts from science and practical remembrance culture.

The study now allows us to trace initial development trajectories in Germany. MEMO II delves deeper into topics that were only touched upon in the first survey. In particular, the perception and ways of coming to terms with the National Socialist era in Germany were surveyed in a more differentiated manner.

Dr. Jonas Rees, Prof. Dr. Andreas Zick, Michael Papendick, Franziska Wäschle / Institut für interdisziplinäre Konflikt- und Gewaltforschung (IKG), Universität Bielefeld
Berlin, Bielefeld 2019
44 Pages
Language: German, English

[Translate to Englisch:] MEMO Studie II (PDF, 822 KB)

Study

MEMO Germany - Multidimensional Remembrance Monitor I

The “Multidimensional Memory Monitor” (MEMO) examines what, how, and why citizens in Germany remember historical events. MEMO I was conducted as a representative telephone survey from December 2017 to February 2018. The results have been made available to the general public in the form of this report. MEMO is designed so that the study can be repeated, thereby becoming a long-term observation.

Prof. Dr. Andreas Zick, Dr. Jonas Rees, Michael Papendick, Franziska Wäschle / Institute for Interdisciplinary Conflict and Violence Research
Bielefeld, Berlin 2018
28 Pages
Language: German

[Translate to Englisch:] MEMO Studie I (2018) (PDF, 634 KB)

Links

Call to remember MEMO-Study 2025

MEMO Germany – Youth Study 2023

MEMO Germany – MEMO Multidimensional Remembrance Monitor - STUDY V

MEMO Germany – Multidimensional Remembrance Monitor IV

MEMO Germany – Multidimensional Remembrance Monitor III

MEMO Germany– Multidimensional Remembrance Monitor II

MEMO Germany - Multidimensional Remembrance Monitor I