FSD3488 Basic Income Experiment Survey 2018
The dataset is (C) available for research only (including Master's, doctoral and Polytechnic/University of Applied Sciences Master's theses). The dataset may not be used for teaching, study (e.g. seminar papers, essays) or other theses (Bachelor's theses or equivalent).
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Study title
Basic Income Experiment Survey 2018
Dataset ID Number
FSD3488
Persistent identifier
urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3488Data Type
Quantitative
Authors
- Social Insurance Institution of Finland (KELA)
Abstract
This survey was conducted as part of the Finnish basic income experiment (2017-2018). During the experiment, a total of 2,000 unemployed persons between 25 and 58 years of age received an unconditional monthly payment of 560 euros. The test group in this study includes those who received basic income in the experiment, and the control group consists of persons who had received unemployment benefits in November 2016. Main themes of the survey included social and financial well-being, subjective health, job-search activity and employment. Additionally, attitudes regarding basic income and other social security were charted. The study was funded by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health and the Social Insurance Institution of Finland (Kela).
First, the respondents' status in employment was surveyed and the ways in which the respondents had found work in the past few years were charted (e.g. by responding to a job advertisement, through a TE office, through an acquaintance). The respondents' general satisfaction with life was examined, and they were asked to what extent they felt they had been able to achieve various things in their life (e.g. confidence in their own future or financial situation, opportunity to influence social issues). Some questions focused on the respondents' health in general as well as their use of various health care services (e.g. number of visits to a nurse, general practitioner or dentist). The respondents were also presented with questions on how they had been feeling in the past four weeks, for example, whether they had felt very nervous or happy. Feelings of depression, loss of interest in things and stress were also surveyed.
The sources from which the respondents' household got income were examined next, and they were asked how well they got by with the current income of their household. The respondents' views on several statements regarding their own financial affairs were charted (e.g. "my finances are well under control and I pay my bills on time" and "I can manage my finances without unnecessary bureaucracy"). Trust in other people and various institutions, such as Parliament, the judicial system, politicians, and the social security system, was examined. The respondents were asked whether they would vote if the parliamentary elections were held now. Finally, the respondents were presented with various statements on basic income, for example, whether they thought implementing basic income would reduce the bureaucracy involved in taking on work and whether basic income should be implemented as a permanent form of social security in Finland.
Background variables included the respondent's gender, age, highest level of education, economic activity and occupational status, household composition, number of children, annual gross income of the household and the respondent, status in employment, the year when the respondent became unemployed, NUTS2 region of residence, and statistical grouping of municipalities.
Keywords
health status; social security; social security benefits; trust; unemployment; unemployment benefits; well-being (health)
Topic Classification
- Social sciences (Fields of Science Classification)
- Social welfare policy (CESSDA Topic Classification)
- Social welfare systems/structures (CESSDA Topic Classification)
Series
Individual datasetsDistributor
Finnish Social Science Data Archive
Access
The dataset is (C) available only for research including master's theses.
Data Collector
- Taloustutkimus
Time Period Covered
2017 – 2018
Collection Dates
2018-10-15 – 2018-12-14
Nation
Finland
Geographical Coverage
Finland
Analysis/Observation Unit Type
Individual
Universe
Persons in the test and control groups in the Finnish basic income experiment (2017-2018)
Time Method
Cross-section
Sampling Procedure
Total universe/Complete enumeration
Probability: Simple random
The survey, which was carried out as phone interviews, was targeted at all 2,000 recipients of basic income in the experiment (test group) and at 5,000 persons in the control group who were selected through random sampling. The sampling was carried out in September 2018. Based on Kela's benefit register, persons who had been issued a non-disclosure for personal safety reasons and those who had died when the experiment was ongoing were not included in the sample. Additionally, persons whose phone number was not included in the benefit register were excluded. The invitation to participate in the research was sent by post. The sample was supplemented in October by selecting a further 600 persons in the control group through random sampling with the same exclusions as mentioned above. Of the remaining 558 persons, 500 randomly selected persons were sent an invitation to participate in the research.
The survey was carried out as phone interviews between October and December 2018. Phone calls were not made to those persons whose invitation letter had been returned to sender (Kela) or who had directly notified Kela that they did not wish to respond to the survey. Four rounds of phone calls were made in total. Of the 7,049 persons who were called, 23.2% responded to the survey.
Collection Mode
Telephone interview: Computer-assisted (CATI)
Research Instrument
Structured questionnaire
Response Rate
23.2
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: English and Finnish.
FSD translates quantitative data into English on request, free of charge. More information on ordering data translation.
Number of Cases and Variables
88 variables and 1597 cases.
Data Version
1.0
Completeness of Data and Restrictions
To prevent identification of participants, the researcher anonymised the data as follows: variables t2 denoting age, t8 denoting number of children, t7 denoting household size, q4_v denoting the year when respondent became unemployed, and t5 denoting economic activity and occupational status were categorised. Variables t9 and t10 denoting gross income of the household and respondent were coarsened. The variable denoting region of residence was removed and variables denoting NUTS2 region of residence and statistical grouping of municipalities were created so that the respondent's municipality of residence could not be identified.
The data do not contain open-ended responses to response option "Other, please specify".
Weighting
The data contain a weight variable [weight] which weights the data to correspond to target population distributions of selected background variables and seeks to compensate for item non-response. Young people and people who speak a foreign language were especially under-represented in the sample. The response propensity model was utilised in weighting the data. The response propensity of a person was estimated with the logit model. The socioeconomic and demographic background variables in the sampling frame (gender, age group, marital status, mother tongue, unemployment benefits received from Kela before the basic income experiment, and region of residence) were chosen for the model.
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
Social Insurance Institution of Finland (KELA): Basic Income Experiment Survey 2018 [dataset]. Version 1.0 (2021-02-11). Finnish Social Science Data Archive [distributor]. https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3488
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
Suomen perustulokokeilun arviointi. 2020. Kangas, O., Jauhiainen, S., Simanainen, M. ja Ylikännö, M. (toim.). Sosiaali- ja terveysministeriö. Raportteja ja muistioita 2020:15. http://urn.fi/URN:ISBN:978-952-00-9890-2
Related Publications
Benjamin Wurm (2023). Bedigungsloses Grundeinkommen und Care-Arbeit. Master's Thesis in Social Work. Duisburg: Universität Duisburg-Essen.
Study description in machine readable DDI-C 2.5 format
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