Study title

Political Participation of Finnish Expatriates 2019

Dataset ID Number

FSD3575

Persistent identifiers

https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3575
https://doi.org/10.60686/t-fsd3575

Data Type

Quantitative

Authors

• Peltoniemi, Johanna (University of Helsinki. Faculty of Social Sciences)
• Wass, Hanna (University of Helsinki. Faculty of Social Sciences)
• Nemcok, Miroslav (University of Helsinki. Faculty of Social Sciences)
• Weide, Marjukka (University of Helsinki. Faculty of Social Sciences)

Abstract

The survey charted various aspects of Finnish expatriates' political participation. Main topics of the survey included the 2019 Finnish parliamentary elections and postal voting, which was introduced during the elections. The survey was collected as part of the Facilitating Electoral Participation from Abroad (FACE) research project, and continued to study the themes of a previous survey (FSD3463 Finnish Expatriates' National Identity and Political Participation 2014).

Questions surveyed the respondents' voting behaviour, social participation, and general interest in politics. The respondents were asked about following politics in the media, forms of political participation they had engaged in (e.g. signing a petition, participating in a demonstration), participation in citizens' initiatives, and membership and participation in associations and organisations. Voting was examined with questions on, for example, the most important topics affecting the respondent's voting choice, the most effective means for increasing the voter turnout of Finnish expatriates, and the usefulness of postal voting.

The respondents were asked how satisfied they were with various aspects related to their own life, Finland, and their country of residence, and their trust in several institutions was examined. The respondents' sources of information on the parliamentary elections, e.g. candidates' or parties' websites or voting advice applications, were also surveyed. The survey included three open-ended questions on how the respondents chose the candidate they voted for or why they did not vote at all, which received a large number of responses (q24, q25 and q30). Responses were written in Finnish, Swedish and English.

Background variables included, among others, the respondent's gender, year of birth, highest level of education, occupation, marital status, reasons for moving abroad, current connections to Finland, and perceived social class and status.

Keywords

European parliament elections; elections; expatriates; living abroad; national identity; parliamentary elections; political participation; satisfaction; social influence; suffrage; voting; voting behaviour

Topic Classification

• Social sciences (Fields of Science Classification)
• Political behaviour and attitudes (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Elections (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Government, political systems and organisations (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Migration (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

• Peltoniemi, Johanna (University of Helsinki. Faculty of Social Sciences)
• Weide, Marjukka (University of Helsinki. Faculty of Social Sciences)

Funders

• Finnish Cultural Foundation

Time Period Covered

2009 – 2019

Collection Dates

2019-05-23 – 2019-09-30

Nation

Finland, Sweden, United States of America, Germany, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Canada, Australia, Switzerland, Norway, Spain, France, Denmark, Netherlands, Italy, Estonia, Belgium, Austria, Israel

Geographical Coverage

Finland, Sweden, United States of America, Germany, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Canada, Australia, Switzerland, Norway, Spain, France, Denmark, Netherlands, Italy, Estonia, Belgium, Austria, Israel, Europe, Asia, Australia and Oceania, Africa, North America, South America

Analysis/Observation Unit Type

Individual

Universe

Finnish expatriates who had the right to vote in the 2019 parliamentary elections

Time Method

Cross-section

Sampling Procedure

Mixed probability and non-probability

The survey's population was approximately 250,000 Finnish expatriates who had the right to vote in Finnish elections. A stratified random sample of 10,000 Finnish nationals aged over 18 and living abroad was formed using the population register, and an invitation to participate in the study was sent by mail. The sample included Finnish expatriates in the 17 largest diasporas (a population of over 1,000 Finnish nationals with the right to vote residing in the same country) who had registered their mother tongue as Finnish or Swedish. 500 people were chosen from each country, with the exception of Sweden, where 1,500 people were selected for the sample. Additionally, the sample included 500 randomly selected Finnish nationals who had the right to vote and who were residing in other countries around the world.

The study was also advertised in the Suomen Silta magazine and the newsletter circulated by the Suomi-Seura organisation, as well as various informal Facebook groups for Finnish expatriates. Under 50 participants were recruited through advertising. The study included respondents from 50 countries.

Collection Mode

Self-administered questionnaire: Web-based (CAWI)

Self-administered questionnaire: Paper

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: English.

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

Number of Cases and Variables

229 variables and 2100 cases.

Data Version

1.0

Related Datasets

FSD3463 Finnish Expatriates' National Identity and Political Participation 2014

FSD3573 Experiences of Postal Voting in the 2019 Finnish Elections 2020-2021

Completeness of Data and Restrictions

To prevent identification of respondents, open-ended responses of the type 'other, please specify' were removed from the data. Additionally, variables denoting specific country of residence, years lived in previous countries of residence, specific mother tongue and languages spoken at home, specific country of birth of respondent's spouse/partner, and the original variables denoting the number of the respondent's children and the respondent's nationality were removed. Variables denoting the number of R's children and R's nationality (Q65_1 and Q65_2) were top-coded at FSD, and variable Q57 denoting R's year of birth was bottom-coded. A new variable Q44 was formed to designate the number of countries R had lived in based on the original variable denoting R's previous countries of residence. Open-ended variables Q24, Q25 and Q30 were coarsened, and more specific location information, information regarding third persons, and mentions of occupation titles were removed. Changes made at FSD were marked with [square brackets].

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

Peltoniemi, Johanna (University of Helsinki) & Wass, Hanna (University of Helsinki) & Nemcok, Miroslav (University of Helsinki) & Weide, Marjukka (University of Helsinki): Political Participation of Finnish Expatriates 2019 [dataset]. Version 1.0 (2022-09-22). Finnish Social Science Data Archive [distributor]. https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3575

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.

Other Material

See downloadable files at the top of the page.

The website of the Facilitating Electoral Participation from Abroad (FACE) research project

More information and a publications list are available on the project website.

Related Publications

Wass, H., Peltoniemi, J., Weide, M., & Nemcok, M. (2021). Signed, Sealed and Delivered with Trust: Non-Resident Citizens' Experiences of Newly Adopted Postal Voting. Frontiers in Political Science - Elections and Representation, 3(83).

Peltoniemi, J., Wass, H. & Weide, M. (2020). Kotini on vaalikoppini. Joustavien äänestysmuotojen merkitys yhdenvertaiselle poliittiselle osallistumiselle. Teoksessa Borg, S., Kestilä-Kekkonen, E. & Wass, H. (toim.) Politiikan ilmastonmuutos. Vaalitutkimus 2019. Helsinki: Oikeusministeriö, 334-363.

Himmelroos, S. & Peltoniemi, J. (2021). External Voting Rights from a Citizen Perspective - Comparing Resident and Non-resident Citizens' Attitudes towards External Voting. Scandinavian Political Studies 44(4), pp. 463-48.

Nemcok, M. & Peltoniemi, J. (2021). Distance and Trust: An Examination of the Two Opposing Factors Impacting Adoption of Postal Voting Among Citizens Living Abroad. Political Behavior. doi:10.1007/s11109-021-09709-7.