Study title

Barometer for Swedish-speaking Finns 2005

Alternative Title

Finlandssvenska barometern 2005

Dataset ID Number

FSD3197

Persistent identifiers

https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3197
https://doi.org/10.60686/t-fsd3197

Data Type

Quantitative

Authors

• Herberts, Kjell (Åbo Akademi University. Social Science Research Institute)

Abstract

This study charted the identity of Swedish-speaking Finns and their opinions on various aspects of everyday life, such as politics and society, the use of mass media, leisure time activities, values, identity, and the sense of belonging. The study was funded by the Swedish Cultural Foundation in Finland (Svenska kulturfonden).

The first questions revolved around language. The respondents' and their families' Finnish and Swedish language skills were surveyed. It was examined whether the respondents had used Swedish, Finnish or both in different types of contexts, e.g. at home, at school, with friends, at bureaus and banks, and at work. The respondents were also asked which language was or would be their children's language at school, whether they preferred not to use Swedish with authorities because they were afraid of receiving hostile service, and if they felt that their errands had not been taken proper care of in the past due to an official's lack of Swedish language skills.

After this, the respondents were asked if they felt a sense of belonging in various lands and regions, such as Finland, Swedish-speaking Finland, Sweden, the Nordic, and the European Union. The survey also examined the strength of the respondents' cultural identity as a Finland-Swede in different groups of people and situations, and whether or not the respondents felt a sense of belonging in various groups.

Opinions were probed on equality in Finland and factors that cause unequal possibilities in life, such as education, language, gender, socioeconomic background, and nationality. The survey also charted if the respondents had noticed negativity towards the elderly and youth in newspapers, commercials, television, politics and working life, for instance. The respondents were asked to evaluate a set of statements concerning control over the respondents' own lives and whether they thought they would be able to change unsatisfactory aspects of their lives if they wanted to.

The section regarding current issues asked questions about the use of the internet and a variety of television channels. At the time of the survey, analog television broadcasts were being shut down in Finland and replaced by digital broadcasting, and respondents were asked if they would have wanted to be able to watch Swedish television channels' digital broadcasting. Finally, the respondents' opinions on joint municipal authorities and the conservation of wolves were surveyed.

Background variables included, for instance, region of residence, age group, gender, education level, economic activity and occupational status, marital status, and household composition.

Keywords

Swedish-speaking Finns; cultural identity; identity; language; mass media; minority groups; minority language users; national identity; politics; press; social inequality; social systems; television; values

Topic Classification

• Social sciences (Fields of Science Classification)
• Cultural and national identity (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Social behaviour and attitudes (CESSDA Topic Classification)

Series

Barometers for Swedish-speaking Finns

Distributor

Finnish Social Science Data Archive

Access

The dataset is (A) openly available for all users without registration (CC BY 4.0).

Data Collector

• Åbo Akademi University. Institute for Finland-Swedish Sociological Research

Time Period Covered

2005

Collection Dates

2005-10 – 2005-11

Nation

Finland

Geographical Coverage

Finland

Analysis/Observation Unit Type

Individual

Universe

People residing in Finland (including Åland) between the ages 18 and 80 who have Swedish as their registered mother tongue.

Time Method

Longitudinal: Cohort/Event-based

Sampling Procedure

Probability: Simple random

The Population Register Centre picked a random sample of 2,000 persons from people residing in Finland who had Swedish as their registered mother tongue. A total of 1,111 filled questionnaires were received.

Collection Mode

Self-administered questionnaire: Paper

Research Instrument

Structured questionnaire

Response Rate

55.6

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: Swedish.

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

Data Version

1.0

Completeness of Data and Restrictions

Responses to open-ended questions were categorised or removed from the data. Two variables, municipality of residence and birth year, were categorised to prevent identification. In the "number of children in the household" variable, values of four and over were categorised into a single category. Variables 31 - 35 in the questionnaire formulated by FPA-bladet were not included in the data, nor variables 36 - 41 formulated by Svenska Pensionärsförbundet rf.

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

Herberts, Kjell (Åbo Akademi University): Barometer for Swedish-speaking Finns 2005 [dataset]. Data version 1.0 (2017-10-25). Finnish Social Science Data Archive [distributor]. DOI: https://doi.org/10.60686/t-fsd3197; URN: https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3197

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

Opinioner och trender i svenskfinland (2008). Toim. Herberts, Kjell. Vaasa: Åbo Akademi. Institutet för finlandssvensk samhällsforskning.

Related Publications

Opinioner och trender i svenskfinland (2008). Toim. Herberts, Kjell. Vaasa: Åbo Akademi. Institutet för finlandssvensk samhällsforskning.