Study title

Finnish EU Attitudes Autumn 1994

Dataset ID Number

FSD2191

Persistent identifiers

https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD2191
https://doi.org/10.60686/t-fsd2191

Data Type

Quantitative

Authors

• Centre for Finnish Business and Policy Studies (EVA)
• Yhdyskuntatutkimus

Abstract

The survey studied Finnish public opinion on the country's proposed membership in the European Union, and the forthcoming referendum on EU membership. Finnish perceptions of the EU were also charted.

The respondents were asked whether they thought Finland should join the EU or not, how firm their opinion was, and how dependent on the issue of agricultural subsidies. Opinions on agricultural/farming subsidies in general were queried. The respondents were asked how interested they were in issues connected with the EU and European integration process, and how well informed they were of these issues. One question asked whether they intended to vote in the referendum on EU membership. Opinions on the likelihood of Finland becoming an EU member state were charted. Regarding the European integration process, the respondents were asked how negatively or positively they viewed the possibility that Finland would participate in common foreign policy, common security and defence policy, single European currency, etc.

The survey studied perceptions of the impact EU membership would have on Finland (e.g. on standard of living, employment, business conditions, crime, social security, national sovereignty, science and research, education, disparity). The respondents were also asked to what extent they agreed with fifty attitudinal statements relating to the EU and Finland's EU membership (e.g. "If Finland did not join the EU now, it would be able to negotiate better terms of accession later" or "Compared to Finland, social security is just as good or better in many EU member states"). Perceptions of the EU were studied with the help of various characterisations (secretive, democratic, promotes welfare in Europe, unreliable negotiation partner, etc.). Finally, the respondents were asked to estimate the percentage of Finns who would vote against the membership in the referendum.

Background variables included the respondent's gender, age group, size of the municipality, province of residence, vocational education, economic activity, employment sector, trade union membership, and which political party R would vote for if the parliamentary elections were held at that time.

Keywords

European Union; European integration; constitutions; referendums

Topic Classification

• Social sciences (Fields of Science Classification)
• Government, political systems and organisations (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• International politics and organisations (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Political behaviour and attitudes (CESSDA Topic Classification)

Series

Finnish EU Attitudes 1992-2012

Distributor

Finnish Social Science Data Archive

Access

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

Data Collector

• Yhdyskuntatutkimus

Data Producers

• Centre for Finnish Business and Policy Studies

Time Period Covered

1994

Collection Dates

1994-08-15 – 1994-09-20

Nation

Finland

Geographical Coverage

Finland

Analysis/Observation Unit Type

Individual

Universe

People aged 18 - 70 resident in Finland (excluding the Åland Islands)

Time Method

Longitudinal: Trend/Repeated cross-section

Sampling Procedure

Probability: Simple random

The sample includes both Swedish-speaking and Finnish-speaking persons aged 18-70, and is representative of the Finnish population in terms of key demographic factors.

Collection Mode

Self-administered questionnaire: Paper

Research Instrument

Structured questionnaire

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: English and Finnish.

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

Number of Cases and Variables

151 variables and 1930 cases.

Data Version

2.0

Completeness of Data and Restrictions

Responses to an open-ended question asking for comments have been removed from the data.

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

Centre for Finnish Business and Policy Studies (EVA) & Yhdyskuntatutkimus: Finnish EU Attitudes Autumn 1994 [dataset]. Version 2.0 (2018-07-23). Finnish Social Science Data Archive [distributor]. https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD2191

Deposit Requirement

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

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

Suomalaisten EU-kannanotot: syksy 1994 (1994). Helsinki: Elinkeinoelämän valtuuskunta (EVA).

Haikonen, Jyrki & Kiljunen, Pentti (2003). Mitä mieltä, suomalainen? EVAn asennetutkimuksien kertomaa vuosilta 1984-2003. Helsinki: Taloustieto. EVA-raportti.

Tuokko, Katja (2012) From Left to West: The position of Vasemmistoliitto on European integration in 1990 - 1998. Poliittisen historian pro gradu -tutkielma. Helsingin yliopisto. hdl:10138/37140

Haavisto, Ilkka (2024). Virkistyvät eurovaalit. Suomalaiset suuntaavat vaaliuurnille aiempaa runsaslukuisemmin [verkkodokumentti]. Helsinki: Elinkeinoelämän valtuuskunta. EVA Analyysi 135. https://www.eva.fi/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/eva-analyysi-no-135.pdf [viitattu 30.8.2024].

Kujanpää, Emmiliina (2024). Suomalaiset eivät lämpene Euroopan unionin rahoituksen kasvattamiselle - uusi yhteisvelka torjutaan [verkkodokumentti]. Helsinki: Elinkeinoelämän valtuuskunta. EVA Artikkeli 28.5.2024.https://www.eva.fi/blog/2024/05/28/suomalaiset-eivat-lampene-euroopan-unionin-rahoituksen-kasvattamiselle-uusi-yhteisvelka-torjutaan/ [viitattu 3.9.2024].