Health Promotion Barometers, formerly called Health Barometers, chart the views of municipal and organisational decision makers on the present state and the future of health promotion. In addition, the surveys investigate the respondents' attitudes towards current health issues from the administrative point of view. The surveys conducted annually 1992-2011 by the Finnish Centre for Health Promotion (nowadays SOSTE Finnish Society for Social and Health).
The survey focused on the health promotion strategies and activities of Finnish municipalities (local government) at the time of the survey and in the future. The respondents were executive directors and managers of various member organisations of the Finnish Centre for Health Promotion or the Association of Voluntary Health, Social and Welfare Organisations (YTY). The same set of questions was also presented to municipal managers and directors of health services (FSD2438).
In this survey, the general situation in health promotion was charted for example from the viewpoints of residential environment, municipal services, and care of alcohol abusers. View were also probed on the visibility and social significance of health promotion, resource allocation in health services, and the development of the Policy programme for the well-being of children, youth and families. In addition, the respondents were asked how they thought leadership and co-operation in health promotion had been realised in their organisations.
Background variables included the organisation's area of operation, the number of individual and institutional members in the organisation, and the sector (e.g. social services organisation, public health organisation, organisation for disabled people, sports organisation) of organisation.
Random sampling from the member organisation lists. The respondents were persons who were in charge of the organisations' practical activities.