Inhaltsangabe:Abstract: This thesis looks at the fundamental issues of fourth party logistics in Germany. The areas interpretation, acceptance and potential implementations are covered in particular. After a brief introduction in Chapter 1, Chapter 2 offers an insight into the topic area in the form of a literature review. The literature review explains the origins of the 4PL-concept as well as functions performed by a 4PL-provider. Different types of 4PL-providers and inter-organisational set-ups are presented. Afterwards the main areas of discussion are identified. Areas such as outsourcing theory and channel concepts have relevance and are dealt with as well. Although the 4PL-basics are not necessarily country-specific, the literature review relies heavily on German sources. In Chapter 3 a conceptual model concerning the topic is presented and hypotheses are developed. In order to test the developed hypotheses, primary data is collected in the form of a Delphi expert discussion. This process is described in detail in Chapter 4. The logistics experts for the panel are drawn from shippers, service providers and researchers; the discussion consists of two rounds. The results of the Delphi process are analysed in Chapter 5 followed by Chapter 6 in which the hypotheses are tested and conclusions are drawn. The findings can be summarised by stating that the panellists generally expressed very pragmatic viewpoints. Further, several of the often-quoted arguments in the 4PL-discuss...