Study title

Rural Finland 2009: Business Executives

Alternative Title

Landmarks Barometer 2009: Business Executives

Dataset ID Number

FSD2572

Persistent identifier

urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD2572

Data Type

Quantitative

Authors

• Kurunmäki, Seija (Kuule)
• Leppänen, Anne (Kuule)
• Hellström, Eeva (Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra. Landmarks Programme)
• Aho, Pauliina (Taloustutkimus)

Abstract

The survey studied opinions on economic life and business opportunities in rural areas in Finland. The respondents were top-level managers of Finnish enterprises. The barometer was developed for the Landsmarks Programme carried out by the Finnish Innovation Fund (Sitra).

First, the respondents were asked to what extent a number of factors increased business opportunities in rural areas. The factors mentioned included, for instance, global demand for natural resources, increase in holiday housing, better opportunities for telework, privatisation of public services. The respondents were also asked to what extent a number of factors were a barrier to utilising business opportunities in rural areas. Factors mentioned included lack of competent staff, long distances, difficult access to services, insufficient infrastructure etc.

One theme pertained to teleworking (telecommuting). Questions covered telework in the respondent's own organisation, and potential barriers to teleworking such as, for instance, more complicated communication between co-workers, insufficient data security, more complicated employee supervision.

The respondents were presented with pairs of statements relating to the countryside, its image and services and asked which statements were closer to their own views. Some questions explored what kind of business ventures they though could have potential in the countryside (e.g. logistics services, organic production, renewable energy production), and what they saw as the most important goals for rural development in terms of their own industry. The goals mentioned included, for instance, better coordination of rural development, improved telecommunications network, preserving cultural heritage.

Further questions studied what the respondents believed the countryside would be like in 2020 and what they hoped it would be like in 2020. The possible future images mentioned included, for example, 'many people live and telework in the countryside', 'its tourism flourishes', 'it is depopulated'.

Background variables included the number of employees, industrial sector and revenue of the enterprise, region (NUTS3) and municipality.

Keywords

businesses; image; rural areas; rural environment; rural policy; rural sociology; telework; top management

Topic Classification

• Social sciences (Fields of Science Classification)
• Agriculture and forestry (Fields of Science Classification)
• Agriculture and rural industry (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Housing (CESSDA Topic Classification)

Series

Rural Finland

Distributor

Finnish Social Science Data Archive

Access

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

Data Collector

• Taloustutkimus
• Kuule

Data Producers

• Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra. Landmarks Programme

Time Period Covered

2009

Collection Dates

2009-09-30 – 2009-10-06

Nation

Finland

Geographical Coverage

Finland

Analysis/Observation Unit Type

Individual

Universe

Top management of Finnish enterprises (executive directors, development managers, financial directors etc.)

Time Method

Longitudinal: Trend/Repeated cross-section

Sampling Procedure

Non-probability: Purposive

The sample of top managers was based on a nationally representative sample of Finnish enterprises (in terms of industrial class and number of employees).

Collection Mode

Self-administered questionnaire: Web-based (CAWI)

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: Finnish.

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

Data Version

2.0

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

Kurunmäki, Seija (Kuule) & Leppänen, Anne (Kuule) & Hellström, Eeva (Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra) & Aho, Pauliina (Taloustutkimus): Rural Finland 2009: Business Executives [dataset]. Version 2.0 (2018-07-20). Finnish Social Science Data Archive [distributor]. https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD2572

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

Maamerkit-barometri 2009. Muuttuva maaseutusuhde (2010) [verkkodokumentti]. Helsinki: Suomen itsenäisyyden juhlarahasto Sitra. Maamerkit-ohjelma. http://www.sitra.fi/NR/rdonlyres/FC2E84B8-FD87-4746-9D87-8C9C4CDBE4FD/0/Maamerkit_Barometri_2009.pdf [viitattu 7.10.2016].