Programme for the International
Assessment of Adult Competencies


In the PIAAC Cycle 2 main study (2022/23), approximately 5,000 people will be interviewed in each participating country. To this end, each country will draw a representative random sample from their PIAAC target population. The target population comprises persons aged 16–65 years residing in private households in the participating country, irrespective of their nationality, residence status, or language skills.

In Germany, the sample will be drawn from the population registers, using a two-stage stratified and clustered sampling design. In the first stage, municipalities from all over Germany will be randomly selected. The latest version of the Federal Statistical Office's municipal directory will serve as a sampling frame. In the second stage, persons from the target population will be drawn at random from the population register in each selected municipality.

Prior to the main study, a three-month field trial will be conducted in 2021 in which approximately 1,500 persons from the target population described above will be interviewed. In Germany, the same sampling procedure will be used for the field study and the main study.