Study title

Finnish Journalists in Changing Media: Journalist Survey 2007

Dataset ID Number

FSD2361

Persistent identifier

urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD2361

Data Type

Quantitative

Authors

• Jyrkiäinen, Jyrki (University of Tampere. Department of Journalism and Mass Communication. Journalism Research and Development Centre)
• Raittila, Pentti (University of Tampere. Department of Journalism and Mass Communication. Journalism Research and Development Centre)

Abstract

The survey studied how Finnish journalists view their own work and working conditions, the changing media environment, multimedia journalism, and Finnish society.

The respondents were asked about their present job duties and whether their job included supervisory status or responsibility for some special area. Freelancers were asked about the number of employers they had had in 2006 and from what media sector. Respondent opinions were charted on how important certain job issues were to them (e.g. challenging work, career prospects, control over working hours, work diversity, wage level, security of job, workplace relations, possibility to have an impact in society). Further questions covered general job satisfaction and possible problems at work such as increased stress over deadlines, insufficient pay compared to tasks, authoritarian management style, competition and distrust between colleagues, lack of control over working hours or content of work etc. The respondents were also asked how they would like to improve their workplace.

Change in work was charted by asking whether a number of things had increased or decreased since the beginning of the year 2005. Things mentioned included, for example, the length/duration of stories/features/items, the number of stories/features/items produced per week per staff member, multimedia working, the use of the same story/feature/item for different media within the same media company or between media companies. Another question explored whether the number of meetings, phone calls or e-mails, or pressure to work overtime etc. had increased or decreased during the past year. The respondents were asked whether certain job characteristics caused them harm or brought joy and satisfaction. The characteristics mentioned included the amount of work, travelling for work, learning new technologies or work methods, workplace relations, being in the public eye etc.

Commitment to the workplace, the media company, and to the professional identity of journalists was studied. Change in time spent on different phases of work (e.g. planning, data gathering, writing/shooting of footage) was charted, likewise the change in average time spent on one story/feature/item and on multimedia journalism. The respondents were asked whether they receive feedback on their work and from whom. Views on what will happen in the media world in the future and the consequences to the quality and ethics of journalism in Finland were probed. The respondents were also asked how well a number of statements relating to the Finnish media corresponded to their own ideas of it. A set of statements explored opinions on various aspects of Finnish society, its politics and values. Finally, the respondents were asked whether they thought certain bodies (e.g. the police, citizen organisations, trade unions, Parliament, the EU, local decision-makers, the church, banks, political parties, big companies) have too much or too little power.

Background variables included the respondent's gender, age group, highest level of education, vocational education for journalism, type of municipality where the workplace is located, length of current employment, time working as a journalist, income, and type of contract.

Keywords

job characteristics; job satisfaction; journalism; journalists; mass media; press; working conditions; workloads

Topic Classification

• Social sciences (Fields of Science Classification)
• Working conditions (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Media (CESSDA Topic Classification)

Series

Individual datasets

Distributor

Finnish Social Science Data Archive

Access

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

Data Collector

• Jyrkiäinen, Jyrki (University of Tampere. Department of Journalism and Mass Communication. Journalism Research and Development Centre)
• Raittila, Pentti (University of Tampere. Department of Journalism and Mass Communication. Journalism Research and Development Centre)

Time Period Covered

2007

Collection Dates

2007-03-23 – 2007-06-01

Nation

Finland

Geographical Coverage

Finland

Analysis/Observation Unit Type

Individual

Universe

Members of the Finnish Union of Journalists working in the press, digital media or publishing (excluding student and retired members, and members who lived abroad or on the Åland Islands)

Time Method

Cross-section

Sampling Procedure

Probability: Stratified

A stratified sample of 1500 persons. The members of the Finnish Union of Journalists were categorized into three strata and a sample was drawn from each strata: newspapers and publishing 49%, digital media 32,3% and magazines/journals/periodicals 18,7%. The percentages in the sample followed the actual percentages of members working in the three areas in 2006. Responses were received both from the postal survey and from the online survey.

Collection Mode

Self-administered questionnaire: Paper

Self-administered questionnaire: Web-based (CAWI)

Research Instrument

Structured questionnaire

Response Rate

40,9

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.

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

Data Version

2.0

Completeness of Data and Restrictions

The order of the variables q4_6 and q4_7 in the data differs from the order in the questionnaire. The answer alternatives to variables q11 and q20 are in an order that differs from that of the questionnaire.

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

Jyrkiäinen, Jyrki (University of Tampere) & Raittila, Pentti (University of Tampere): Finnish Journalists in Changing Media: Journalist Survey 2007 [dataset]. Version 2.0 (2018-07-18). Finnish Social Science Data Archive [distributor]. https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD2361

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

Jyrkiäinen, Jyrki (2008). Journalistit muuttuvassa mediassa. Tampereen yliopisto, Tiedotusopin laitos: Julkaisuja; Sarja B 50.