Study title

Ninth-Graders' Conceptions of Sexual Minorities 2004

Dataset ID Number

FSD2377

Persistent identifiers

https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD2377
https://doi.org/10.60686/t-fsd2377

Data Type

Quantitative

Authors

• Malinen, Jari (University of Jyväskylä. Department of Special Education)

Abstract

The study canvassed lower secondary school ninth-graders' (i.e. about 15-year-olds') attitudes towards and knowledge of sexual minorities. The data were originally used in a Master's thesis in special education which examined topics such as students' attitudes towards minorities, their own sexuality and sex education taught in their school.

First, the students were asked to assess their general attitude towards various population groups, and to rank them according to how easily they would accept representatives of these groups as their friend or teacher. They were also asked whether they considered it possible to tell a person's sexual orientation based on his/her appearance, and where they had received information on sexual minorities. Further questions covered the respondents' acquaintances belonging to sexual minorities, their own sexual orientation, possible sexual experiences with a person of the same sex, and whether they considered themselves tolerant of sexual minorities.

Regarding sex education taught in the respondents' school, they were asked whether there had been discussions about dating or sexuality in their class during the past school year. If there had been some, they were also asked to identify the teacher and the subject of these classes, as well as the topics discussed during them. Finally, the respondents were presented with a set of attitudinal statements on homosexuality and school.

Background variables included the respondent's school (rural or urban, numbered), class, and gender.

Keywords

attitudes; female homosexuality; homosexuality; minority groups; prejudice; schoolchildren; secondary schools; sex education; sexual minorities; tolerance

Topic Classification

• Social sciences (Fields of Science Classification)
• Minorities (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Social behaviour and attitudes (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Youth (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

• Malinen, Jari (University of Jyväskylä. Department of Special Education)

Data Producers

• University of Jyväskylä. Department of Special Education

Time Period Covered

2004

Collection Dates

2004-11 – 2004-12

Nation

Finland

Geographical Coverage

Finland

Analysis/Observation Unit Type

Individual

Universe

Ninth-graders in Finnish lower secondary schools.

Time Method

Cross-section

Sampling Procedure

Mixed probability and non-probability

The target population consisted of ninth-graders from eight Finnish lower secondary schools. The target schools were selected so that half of them represented urban areas and the other half rural areas. Ten schools were selected for the research, and two of them did not want to participate either because they were too busy, had already participated in several research projects, or considered the subject too sensitive. The eight schools that participated in the project were ordinary Finnish schools in terms of size, structure, curriculum, and staff. The total number of returned questionnaires was 1,005 (498 girls, 480 boys, and 23 with missing gender information). Not a single student refused to complete the questionnaire. Only the responses of those students who were absent from the class where the questionnaire was completed are missing. Altogether four questionnaires were discarded because they were either empty or completed in an inappropriate or unclear fashion. The response rate of the survey was 89.7%.

Collection Mode

Self-administered questionnaire: Paper

Research Instrument

Structured questionnaire

Response Rate

89.7

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

Responses to open-ended questions 3 and 4 are not included in the data. Question 12 has been classified into 35 categories on the basis of the open-ended responses.

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

Malinen, Jari (University of Jyväskylä): Ninth-Graders' Conceptions of Sexual Minorities 2004 [dataset]. Data version 2.0 (2018-07-18). Finnish Social Science Data Archive [distributor]. DOI: https://doi.org/10.60686/t-fsd2377; URN: https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD2377

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 Materials

Malinen, Jari (2005). Peruskoulun yhdeksäsluokkalaisten käsitykset seksuaalivähemmistöistä. Jyväskylä: Jyväskylän yliopisto. Erikoispedagogiikan pro gradu -tutkielma.

Related Publications

Malinen, Jari (2005). Peruskoulun yhdeksäsluokkalaisten käsitykset seksuaalivähemmistöistä. Jyväskylä: Jyväskylän yliopisto. Erikoispedagogiikan pro gradu -tutkielma.

Malinen, Jari (2006). Peruskoulun yhdeksäsluokkalaisten käsityksiä seksuaalivähemmistöistä. Nuorisotutkimusseura, 24(1), 18-24.