Study title

Generational Transmissions in Finland, Baby Boomers 2012

Dataset ID Number

FSD3255

Persistent identifiers

https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3255
https://doi.org/10.60686/t-fsd3255

Data Type

Quantitative

Authors

• Rotkirch, Anna (Family Federation of Finland. Population Research Institute)
• Haavio-Mannila, Elina (University of Helsinki)
• Roos, Jeja-Pekka (University of Helsinki)
• Danielsbacka, Mirkka (University of Helsinki)
• Tanskanen, Antti O. (University of Helsinki)

Abstract

The study charted Finnish baby boomers' contacts with relatives and friends as well as giving and receiving help. The study was funded by the Academy of Finland (project id 250620) and Alli Paasikivi Foundation. FSD's holdings also include data on baby boomers' chilren collected in the same research project (FSD3256).

First, the respondents were asked whether they kept up their health and whether they suffered from a long-term illness or a permanent injury. They were asked whether they considered themselves happy, if they considered religion important in their lives, and whether they had participated in charity or voluntary work within the previous year. The number of the respondents' children and grandchildren was enquired, after which the respondents' adult children were examined in more detail. Questions charted at which age the respondents' children moved away from home and how far away they lived, as well as how the respondents perceived their children's financial situation. The respondents were asked how often on average they had been in contact with their children within the previous year, how close they felt to their children, and whether they had had conflicts with them.

It was also examined whether the respondents had received practical help (e.g. with yard work, renovation, technology) or financial help from their children within the previous year, and whether they had provided similar help to their children. Whether the respondents had babysat their grandchildren and how many times within the previous year was also examined, as well as whether the respondents' children or their spouses had restricted the respondents' ability to contact their grandchildren.

The birth year of the respondents' and their spouses' parents was charted as well as whether the parents were still alive. More questions were asked regarding the respondents' and their spouses' living parents, such as how far away they lived, how the respondents perceived their state of health and financial circumstances, and how often they had been in contact within the previous year. They were also asked how close they were and how often within the previous year the respondents had helped their own or their spouses' parents with care (e.g. washing, feeding) or provided them with practical or financial assistance.

Similar questions were also asked about siblings: how many brothers and sisters the respondents had, when they were born, whether they all shared the same parents, how far away they lived, how the respondents perceived their financial circumstances, how often they had been in contact, whether they had had conflicts, and whether they had received and provided help. It was also asked whether the respondents felt that their parents had treated all siblings equally, whether the siblings had children, and how often the respondents had been in contact with their siblings' children or provided them with financial help.

Similar questions were also asked concerning different kinds of relatives as well as friends. The respondents were also asked how many close friends they perceived to have and how many relatives they considered 'close'.

Attitudinal statements examined the respondents' views on whether grandparents have the responsibility to babysit their grandchildren, to advance grandchildren's and their families' financial security, and to take care of grandchildren if parents are not able to, as well as whether it is natural for daughters to take more responsibility than sons in caring for their aged parents, and whether children have the responsibility to take their parents to live with them when they are no longer able to live independently. Finally, the respondents were asked how responsibility should be shared between society and family concerning financial support to the elderly, helping the elderly with everyday chores, and caring for the elderly, and the respondents' opinions on giving and receiving help was charted with regard to whether they expected to be helped themselves in the future when providing help to others, whether they only provided help to those relatives or friends that they liked, and whether friends and relatives demanded too much of the respondents.

Background variables included, among others, gender, marital status, own and spouse's birth year, economic activity (own and spouse's), education (own and spouse's), household composition, net monthly income, and perceived financial status.

Keywords

care of the elderly; child care; family members; friends; generations (age); grandchildren; grandparents; informal care; interpersonal relations; offspring; parents; social networks

Topic Classification

• Social sciences (Fields of Science Classification)
• Social behaviour and attitudes (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Family life and marriage (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

• Nyberg, Riina (Statistics Finland)

Data Producers

• University of Helsinki
• Family Federation of Finland. Population Research Institute

Time Period Covered

2011 – 2012

Collection Dates

2012-03-16 – 2012-05-29

Nation

Finland

Geographical Coverage

Finland

Analysis/Observation Unit Type

Individual

Universe

Women and men residing in Finland who were born in Finland in 1945 - 1950 (excluding the Åland Islands)

Time Method

Longitudinal: Trend/Repeated cross-section

Sampling Procedure

Probability: Simple random

Some respondents are longitudinal respondents who responded to a survey conducted in 2007 and gave their consent to participating in this study as well. Other respondents were picked from the Population Register Centre's population database (2011/2012) using random sampling.

Collection Mode

Self-administered questionnaire: Paper

Research Instrument

Structured questionnaire

Response Rate

65.1

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

1.0

Related Datasets

FSD3256 Generational Transmissions in Finland, Baby Boomers' Adult Children 2012

Completeness of Data and Restrictions

The data can be connected to dataset FSD3256 collected from baby boomers' adult children, of which some belong to the same family as some respondents in this dataset. This is incidated by variable bv1 (family id). Some publications listed as having used both datasets (FSD3255 and FSD3256) have only used one of the datasets.

To prevent identification, open-ended responses in the following variables were removed during archiving: long-term illnesses (k8), babysitting help (k32), equal treatment by parents (k61), and variables collecting feedback on the survey. In addition, extreme values were top- and bottom-coded (spouse's year of birth k3b) and categories were combined (marital status k2, education k5a and k5b).

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

Rotkirch, Anna (Family Federation of Finland) & Haavio-Mannila, Elina (University of Helsinki) & Roos, Jeja-Pekka (University of Helsinki) & Danielsbacka, Mirkka (University of Helsinki) & Tanskanen, Antti O. (University of Helsinki): Generational Transmissions in Finland, Baby Boomers 2012 [dataset]. Version 1.0 (2018-11-07). Finnish Social Science Data Archive [distributor]. https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3255

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

Tanskanen, A.O. & Rotkirch, A. (2018). Sibling similarity and relationship quality in Finland. Acta Sociologica, 61, doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/0001699318777042.

Tanskanen, A.O., Kallio, J. & Danielsbacka, M. (2018). Should the family or the state provide support for the elderly people? Findings from a two-generational Finnish study. International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, 38, doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/esr/jcy044.

Danielsbacka, M. & Tanskanen, A.O. (2018). Marital disruption and intergenerational relations among older Finns. Contemporary Social Science, doi: 10.1080/21582041.2017.1422794.

Danielsbacka, M., Tanskanen, A.O. & Rotkirch, A. (2017). The "kinship penalty": Parenthood and in-law conflict in contemporary Finland. Evolutionary Psychological Science, doi: 10.1007/s40806-017-0114-8.

Tanskanen, A.O. & Danielsbacka, M. (2017). Parenthood status and relationship quality between siblings. Journal of Family Studies, 23, doi:10.1080/13229400.2017.1374203.

Hämäläinen, H. & Tanskanen, A.O. (2017). Intergenerational transfers towards adult children and elderly parents. Working Papers on Social and Economic Issues 14/2017. Turku: Turku Center for Welfare Research.

Danielsbacka, M. & Tanskanen, A.O. (2017). Marital disruption and grandparental investment in Finland. Working Papers on Social and Economic Issues 12/2017. Turku: Turku Center for Welfare Research.

Danielsbacka, M. & Tanskanen, A.O. (2016). The association between grandparental investment and grandparents' happiness in Finland. Personal Relationships, 23(4), 787-800.

Danielsbacka, M. & Tanskanen, A.O. (2016). Grandfather involvement in Finland: Impact of divorce, remarriage and widowhood. In: Buchanan, A. & Rotkirch, A. (eds.) Grandfathers: International perspectives. (pp. 183-197). London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Tanskanen, A.O. & Danielsbacka, M. (2016). Contact frequencies with nieces and nephews in Finland: Evidence for the preferential investment in more certain kin theory. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 33, 26-43.

Tanskanen, A.O. & Danielsbacka, M. (2016). Do Volunteering and Charity Pay Off? Well-being Benefits of Participating in Voluntary Work and Charity for Older and Younger Adults in Finland. Research on Ageing and Social Policy, 4, 2-28. doi:10.17583/rasp.2016.1640.

Tanskanen, A.O., Kallio, J. & Danielsbacka, M. (2016). Attitudes towards elderly care among older and younger Finns. Working Papers on Social and Economic Issues 17/2016. Turku: Turku Center for Welfare Research.

Tanskanen, A.O. (2016). Does sibling similarity predict relationship quality in Finland? A two-generational investigation. Working Papers on Social and Economic Issues 16/2016. Turku: Turku Center for Welfare Research.

Danielsbacka, M., Tanskanen, A.O. & Rotkirch, A. (2016). Parenthood is associated with conflicts with in-laws in Finland. Working Papers on Social and Economic Issues 7/2016. Turku: Turku Center for Welfare Research.

Pelkonen, I., Tanskanen, A.O. & Danielsbacka, M. (2015). Huono-osaiset nuoret aikuiset ja epävirallinen apu. Helsinki: Väestöliitto

Tanskanen, A.O. & Danielsbacka, M. (2015). Ovatko vapaaehtoistyö ja hyväntekeväisyys yhteydessä onnellisuuteen? The Association between Voluntariness, Charity and Happiness. Yhteiskuntapolitiikka, 80, 469-481.

Danielsbacka, M. & Tanskanen, A.O. (2015). The Association between Unequal Parental Treatment and the Sibling Relationship in Finland: The Difference between Full and Half-Siblings. Evolutionary Psychology, 13, 492-510.

Danielsbacka, M., Tanskanen, A.O. & Rotkirch, A. (2015). Impact of Genetic Relatedness and Emotional Closeness on Intergenerational Relations. Journal of Marriage and Family, doi:10.1111/jomf.12206.

Tanskanen, A.O. (2015). Childlessness and investment in nieces, nephews, aunts, and uncles in Finland. Journal of Biosocial Science, 47, 402-406.

Hämäläinen, Hans (2015): Apua tarpeiden vai mahdollisuuksien mukaan? Suurten ikäluokkien iäkkäille vanhemmilleen sekä aikuisille lapsilleen antamaan hoiva- ja käytännön apuun yhteydessä olevat tekijät. Janus 23 (4), 387-404.

Tanskanen, A.O. & Danielsbacka, M. (2014). Genetic Relatedness Predicts Contact Frequencies with Siblings, Nieces and Nephews: Results from the Generational Transmissions in Finland Surveys. Personality and Individual Differences, 69, 5-11.

Tanskanen, A.O., Danielsbacka, M. & Rotkirch, A. (2014). Multi-partner fertility is associated with lower grandparental investment from in-laws in Finland. Advances in Life Course Research, 22, 41-48.

Hämäläinen, H. & Tanskanen, A.O. (2014). Autetaanko lapsia enemmän kuin vanhempia? Suurten ikäluokkien lapsilleen ja vanhemmilleen antama käytännön apu ja hoiva. Yhteiskuntapolitiikka, 79, 365-374.

Danielsbacka, Mirkka & Tanskanen, Antti & Hämäläinen, Hans & Pelkonen, Inka & Haavio-Mannila, Elina & Rotkirch, Anna & Karisto, Antti & Roos, J.P. (2013). Sukupolvien vuorovaikutus. Auttaminen ja yhteydenpito suurten ikäluokkien ja heidän lastensa elämässä. Väestöntutkimuslaitoksen julkaisusarja D 58/2013.

Hämäläinen, Hans (2017). Perhesukupolvien välinen apu. Tutkimus suurten ikäkuokkien vanhemmilleen ja aikuisille lapsilleen antamasta avusta. Valtiotieteellisen tiedekunnan julkaisuja 45. Helsinki: Unigrafia.

Danielsbacka, M. (2016). Grandparental investments and family dynamics in contemporary Europe. Publications of the Faculty of Social Sciences 13. Helsinki: Unigrafia.

Fonselius, R. (2018). Epävirallinen auttaminen suurten ikäluokkien elämässä: Maaseudulla ja kaupungeissa asuvien vertailua. Pro gradu. Yhteiskuntapolitiikka. Helsingin yliopisto.

Kuivalainen, M. (2018). Perhesukupolvet hankauksessa: Isovanhemman ja lapsenlapsen välisen yhteydenpidon rajoittaminen. Pro gradu. Yhteiskuntapolitiikka. Helsingin yliopisto.

Pelkonen, I. (2015). Huono-osaiset ja lähipiiriltä saatu apu. Pro gradu. Yhteiskuntapolitiikka. Helsingin yliopisto.

Paajanen, K. (2014). Epävirallisen auttamisen yhteys suurten ikäluokkien työssä jatkamiseen. Pro gradu. Yhteiskuntapolitiikka. Helsingin yliopisto.