Study title

Turku Polytechnic Student Health Survey 2000

Dataset ID Number

FSD2098

Persistent identifiers

https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD2098
https://doi.org/10.60686/t-fsd2098

Data Type

Quantitative

Authors

• Kunttu, Kristina (Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS))
• Huttunen, Teppo (Clinical Research Services Turku (CRST))

Abstract

The health survey of polytechnic students charted the respondents' health, and factors influencing their health. Questions covered general state of health, possible illnesses and injuries, and use of medication. Mental health was investigated with the help of GHQ12 (General Health Questionnaire) and a screen test created by psychologist Salli Saari. The screen test focused on the respondents' relationships to their parents and friends, their sexuality, and strengths and skills.

Health behaviour was examined with questions pertaining to smoking, drug and alcohol use, nutrition and exercise. Relating to alcohol use, the respondents were asked how much and how often they drank alcohol, and whether drinking had ever prevented them from doing something planned or caused an accident. The questionnaire included an AUDIT-test (Alcohol Disorder Test). Nutritional habits were investigated with questions about the respondents' consumption of dairy and grain products, fruits, berries, vegetables, and sugary and fatty products. The respondents were also asked whether they were on a special diet and evaluated their own state of health. Participation in sports as well as the frequency of brushing teeth, using dental floss and eating xylitol chewing gum were charted.

The respondents were asked about their feelings of loneliness and level of social interaction. With regard to studies, the respondents assessed whether their area of study was the right one for them, when they were going to graduate, who had given them study guidance and how satisfied they had been with the guidance. The respondents' financial circumstances and participation in paid employment were studied.

Attitudes towards health issues were charted by asking whether there should be legislation regulating smoking in the workplace, alcohol selling in retail shops, cannabis use, or alcohol use in public places etc. The respondents were asked whether health professionals had advised them to change their lifestyle, and whether a doctor's instructions had helped them to do so. The most important sources of health-related information were also surveyed.

Finally, the respondents' use of health services was investigated. Visits to student, occupational, military, public or private health service units were studied, and the respondents evaluated the quality of service and care they had received. Need for help from health services in certain issues (e.g. stress management, self-esteem and nutrition) was charted. Background variables included the respondent's gender, marital status, number of children, year of birth, year of beginning studies, and area of study.

The study was funded by the research and development fund of the Finnish Student Health Service.

Keywords

accidents; alcohol use; dental health; diet and exercise; drinking behaviour; drug use; food and nutrition; health; health services; health status; interpersonal relations; lifestyle and health; mental health; physical activities; smoking; students (college); symptoms; tutoring

Topic Classification

• Social sciences (Fields of Science Classification)
• Medical and health sciences (Fields of Science Classification)
• Youth (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Psychology (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• General health and well-being (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Drug abuse, alcohol and smoking (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Physical fitness and exercise (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Diet and nutrition (CESSDA Topic Classification)

Series

University Student Health Surveys

Distributor

Finnish Social Science Data Archive

Access

The dataset is (B) available for research, teaching and study.

Data Collector

• Kunttu, Kristina (Finnish Student Health Service)
• Huttunen, Teppo (Clinical Research Services Turku)

Data Producers

• Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS)
• Ministry of Education
• Student Research Foundation
• Pro Sanitate Studiosorum Foundation

Time Period Covered

2000

Collection Dates

2000-02 – 2000-06

Nation

Finland

Geographical Coverage

Finland, Turku

Analysis/Observation Unit Type

Individual

Universe

Students of Turku Polytechnic in January 2000

Time Method

Cross-section

Data Sources

Background variables were obtained from the student register of Turku Polytechnic.

Sampling Procedure

Non-probability: Purposive

Turku Polytechinc selected from its student register 250 basic degree students in each administrative unit. Respondents were chosen starting from those who had studied the longest. That is why the sample concentrated on third and fourth year students. Sample size was 999 students, out of which 406 were men and 593 women.

Follow-up mailings were sent three times. A total of 615 questionnaires were returned, two of them had to be rejected.

Collection Mode

Self-administered questionnaire: Paper

Research Instrument

Structured questionnaire

Response Rate

61.6

Data File Language

Downloaded data package may contain different language versions of the same files.

The data files of this dataset are available in the following languages: Finnish and English.

FSD translates quantitative data into English on request, free of charge. More information on ordering data translation.

Number of Cases and Variables

337 variables and 613 cases.

Data Version

2.0

Completeness of Data and Restrictions

For confidentiality reasons, following anonymisation measures were carried out during archiving: year when started studies (bv2) and year of birth (bv4) were categorised. The largest values in the "number of children" variable (q77) were categorised into a single category (two and over). Variables "height" and "weight" were coded into separate variables for men and women (q8a/b, q9a/b), and values were top- and bottom-coded. Some of the open-ended responses were removed from the data. Identifiers were removed from the remaining open-ended responses; anonymisations carried out at FSD were marked with [square brackets].

Weighting

There are no weight variables in the data.

Citation Requirement

The data and its creators shall be cited in all publications and presentations for which the data have been used. The bibliographic citation may be in the form suggested by the archive or in the form required by the publication.

Bibliographical Citation

Kunttu, Kristina (Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS)) & Huttunen, Teppo (Clinical Research Services Turku (CRST)): Turku Polytechnic Student Health Survey 2000 [dataset]. Data version 2.0 (2018-07-10). Finnish Social Science Data Archive [distributor]. DOI: https://doi.org/10.60686/t-fsd2098; URN: https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD2098

Deposit Requirement

Notify FSD of all publications where you have used the data by sending the citation information to user-services.fsd@tuni.fi.

Special Terms and Conditions for Access

Users of the data shall send the creator of the data a copy of all publications based on or using the data. If printed, to the mail address: Medical Director, FSHS, Töölönkatu 37 A, 00260 Helsinki, FINLAND. If electronic, to the e-mail address: firstname.lastname@yths.fi. More detailed contact information: https://www.yths.fi/en/contact-information/administration/

Disclaimer

The original data creators and the archive bear no responsibility for any results or interpretations arising from the reuse of the data.

Related Publications

Kunttu, Kristina & Huttunen, Teppo (2001). Turun ammattikorkeakoulun opiskelijaterveystutkimus 2000. Turku: Turun ammattikorkeakoulu. Turun ammattikorkeakoulun raportteja; 3.

Kunttu, Kristina & Huttunen, Teppo (2004). Turkulaisten yliopisto- ja ammattikorkeakouluopiskelijoiden terveyden, terveyskäyttäytymisen ja terveyspalvelujen käytön erot. Teoksessa: Oireilevan opiskelijan viesti? Tutkimuksia Korkeakouluopiskelijoiden terveystutkimus 2000 -aineistosta (toim. Kristina Kunttu), 229-252. Helsinki: Kansaneläkelaitos. Sosiaali- ja terveysturvan katsauksia; 63.

Virtala, A. & Vilska, S. & Huttunen, T. & Kunttu, K. (2012). The desire for children and awareness about the impact of age on female fertility. Gynaecology Forum Vol. 17, No. 3, 2012.

Pörhölä, Maili (2016). Do the roles of bully and victim remain stable from school to university? Theoretical considerations. In Bullying Among University Students : Cross-national perspectives (eds. Helen Cowie & Carrie Anne Myers), 35-46. Abingdon: Routledge.

Pörhölä M.: Kiusaaminen opiskelijoiden keskuudessa. Julkaisussa Kunttu K, Komulainen A, Makkonen K, Pynnönen P. (toim.) Opiskeluterveys (online). Helsinki: Kustannus Oy Duodecim, 2017 (ote00046).

Lehtonen K, Hakonen H. (2013). Basic information on civic activity in Finnish sports: Participation and volunteer work i sports clubs. English summary. LIKES -Researsh Center for Sport and Health Sciences, Jyväskylä, Finland. Liikunnan kansalaistoiminnan tietopohja, Liikunnan harrastaminen ja vapaaehtoistyö urheiluseuroissa

Nieminen A. A comparative analysisis of questionnaires assessing mental health, stress and burnout. Master thesis, Hogeschool Universiteit Brussel, May 2011.