Study title

Sociobarometer 2020

Dataset ID Number

FSD3567

Persistent identifiers

https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3567
https://doi.org/10.60686/t-fsd3567

Data Type

Quantitative

Authors

• SOSTE Finnish Federation for Social Affairs and Health

Abstract

The sociobarometer is a wide-ranging survey charting expert opinion on the welfare of Finnish citizens and the present state of welfare services in Finland. The 2020 sociobarometer charted issues such as services for older people, basic security, employment services and the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on social and health services. Respondents included healthcare managers and social workers at municipalities and joint municipal authorities, directors of operational units at Kela (Social Insurance Institution of Finland) and managers of local employment and economic development offices (TE Offices).

One of the themes of the survey was the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on services and support needs. Respondents were asked, among other things, which groups of people in the region are particularly concerned, how the needs of clients have been met and how services have been developed during the pandemic. In particular, they asked about the impact of the pandemic on the service needs of older people and the support targeted at them.

Another broader theme was employment, basic security and income support. For example, the survey explored how the service needs of people getting the basic social assistance and other groups were met before, during and after the pandemic. It also asked how employment had been improved in different regions. Respondents were also asked to rate different statements related to the increase in inequality.

Background variables included the respondent's sector of work, the size of the area of activity and the major region. For respondents from TE Offices, the data also include a regional variable at the level of the province.

Keywords

covid-19; elderly; employment services; health services; incentives; social inequality; social security; social security benefits; social services; social welfare; social work; well-being (health)

Topic Classification

• Social sciences (Fields of Science Classification)
• Health care services and policies (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Equality, inequality and social exclusion (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Social welfare policy (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Social welfare systems/structures (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Specific social services: use and availability (CESSDA Topic Classification)

Series

Sociobarometers

Distributor

Finnish Social Science Data Archive

Access

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

Data Collector

• SOSTE Finnish Federation for Social Affairs and Health

Funders

• Funding Centre for Social Welfare and Health Organisations
• Social Insurance Institution of Finland
• Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare
• Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment

Time Period Covered

2020

Collection Dates

2020-05-04 – 2020-05-21

Nation

Finland

Geographical Coverage

Finland

Analysis/Observation Unit Type

Organization/Institution

Universe

Healthcare managers and social workers at municipalities and joint municipal authorities, directors at Kela (Social Insurance Institution of Finland) and managers of local employment and economic development offices (TE Offices) (excluding the Åland Islands)

Time Method

Longitudinal: Trend/Repeated cross-section

Sampling Procedure

Total universe/Complete enumeration

The questionnaires were sent to all healthcare managers and social workers of municipalities and joint municipal authorities in continental Finland, management of Kela and local employment and economic development offices (TE Offices). 776 responses were received before the deadline. Each respondent group had their own questionnaire.

The social welfare and healthcare managers' contact details were collected from the websites of municipalities and joint municipal authorities in April 2020. The data collection took into consideration municipal mergers happening in early 2020 as well as new social welfare and healthcare regions. Several respondents were picked in the largest cities and joint municipal authorities, depending on the organisational structure. 288 questionnaires were sent out with 117 responses received (response rate 41%, constituting 15% of total data).

The questionnaire for social workers was sent to registry offices of municipalities and joint municipal authorities with a request that it be forwarded to social workers in the area. 496 social workers responded (constituting 64% of total data). The total number of social workers is not known, so the response rate cannot be calculated.

The questionnaire for Kela management was sent to managers of the business units of Customer Relations, Benefit Services and Development, as well as Directors of Customer Service Units, and Heads of Customer Service Sections. 223 questionnaires were sent and 107 responses were received (response rate 48%, constituting 14% of total data).

The questionnaire for managers of local employment and economic development offices (TE Offices) was sent to directors and managers whose contact details were received from the Ministry of Economis Affairs and Employment. 140 questionnaires were sent and 56 responses were received (response rate 40%, constituting 7% of total data).

The responses of the social welfare and healthcare managers' cover 191 municipalities, or 65% of municipalities and 3.7 million Finns. The responses from social workers cover a total of 213 municipalities and 4.9 million Finns. In total, the responses from social welfare and healthcare respondents cover 265 municipalities, which is 90% of municipalities and 5.3 million of the Finnish population.

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

1.0

Completeness of Data and Restrictions

In the data, the different groups of respondents are named as follows: 1= Social welfare and healthcare managers, 2= Management of Kela, 3= Management of TE Offices and 8= Social workers.

For identification reasons, the researcher has removed open variables and some background variables, such as detailed regional and organisational information. At FSD, all respondent background data such as education level, gender, years of work experience and regional data at provincial level (except for respondents from TE Offices) have been removed from the data. In addition, the areas of operation of the Kela management have been classified.

The open variables and responses had been removed from the data provided to FSD.

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

SOSTE Finnish Federation for Social Affairs and Health: Sociobarometer 2020 [dataset]. Version 1.0 (2022-10-17). Finnish Social Science Data Archive [distributor]. https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3567

Deposit Requirement

Notify FSD of all publications where you have used the data by sending the citation information to user-services.fsd@tuni.fi.

Special Terms and Conditions for Access

Users of the data shall send the Suomen sosiaali ja terveys ry (SOSTE) a copy of all reports, theses, articles, other publications or material based on or using the data. If printed, to the mail address: SOSTE Suomen sosiaali ja terveys ry, Tutkimus, Yliopistonkatu 5, 00100 HELSINKI, FINLAND. If electronic, to the e-mail address: tutkimus@soste.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

Sosiaalibarometri 2020 (2020). Anne Eronen, Katja Ilmarinen, Merita Jokela, Heikki Hiilamo, Pekka Karjalainen, Sakari Karvonen, Minna Kivipelto, Erja Koponen, Lars Leeman, Pia Londén, Peppi Saikku. Helsinki: SOSTE Suomen sosiaali ja terveys ry. Saatavana: https://www.soste.fi/sosiaalibarometri/