Study title

Tampere University Students' Political Efficacy 2022

Dataset ID Number

FSD3787

Persistent identifiers

https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3787
https://doi.org/10.60686/t-fsd3787

Data Type

Quantitative

Authors

• Kestilä-Kekkonen, Elina (Tampere University)
• Tiihonen, Aino (Tampere University)
• Sipinen, Josefina (Tampere University)
• Kekkonen, Maria (Tampere University)
• Myllymäki, Aino (Tampere University)
• Vahteri, Iina (Tampere University)
• Jaakkola, Julia (Tampere University)
• Äijälä, Liisa (Tampere University)
• Lappalainen, Sanna (Tampere University)
• Haataja, Lotta (Tampere University)

Abstract

The survey examined university students' attitudes towards politics and societal issues. The survey also explored how this relationship has evolved. The survey was carried out by students in a research course organised by the Department of Political Science at the University of Tampere, together with their professors as part of the Education, Political Efficacy and Informed Citizenship (EPIC) project funded by the Academy of Finland. The aim of the study was to investigate the formation of students' political efficacy, i.e. the extent to which they feel they understand politics and can influence it.

First, respondents were asked how interested they were in politics. Next, respondents were asked about their opinions on various statements related to their attitude towards politics and their own possibilities of influence. They were then asked about their trust in various institutions, such as the government and the media. Next, respondents were asked about their opinions on various proposals for the future direction of Finland. Respondents were then asked about their position on the left-right axis and which party they would vote for.

Next, the survey moved on to ask about the different forms of social participation that respondents have engaged in over the past 12 months. The current level of knowledge about political issues and whether this was influenced by studies, work experience or organisational activities were also explored. The next section looked at political activity in the respondents' childhood and childhood home. Finally, respondents were asked about their confidence in themselves and in the future.

Background variables included the respondent's age, gender, political party preference, economic activity, year of starting studies, field of education, and parents' level of education.

Keywords

attitudes; political action; political behaviour; political influence; political participation; political parties; politicians; politics; trust; undergraduates; voting; well-being (society)

Topic Classification

• Social sciences (Fields of Science Classification)
• Political behaviour and attitudes (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Higher and further education (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

• Kestilä-Kekkonen, Elina (Tampere University)
• Tiihonen, Aino (Tampere University)
• Sipinen, Josefina (Tampere University)
• Kekkonen, Maria (Tampere University)
• Myllymäki, Aino (Tampere University)
• Vahteri, Iina (Tampere University)
• Jaakkola, Julia (Tampere University)
• Äijälä, Liisa (Tampere University)
• Lappalainen, Sanna (Tampere University)
• Haataja, Lotta (Tampere University)

Funders

• Academy of Finland
• Tampere University

Time Period Covered

2022

Collection Dates

2022-04-13 – 2022-04-27

Nation

Finland

Geographical Coverage

Finland

Analysis/Observation Unit Type

Individual

Universe

Students of Tampere University

Time Method

Cross-section

Sampling Procedure

Total universe/Complete enumeration

Respondents were recruited for the survey both by email and by disseminating information about the survey on the campuses of the Tampere University. An invitation to the survey was sent by email to all students present via the university's student and applicant services. In addition, information about the survey was disseminated via email lists of student associations and guilds, social media and physical advertisements (e.g. in student canteens). It was important to have a representative sample by field of study, so the accumulation of responses from different fields of study was monitored in real time. A total of 832 students from different fields of study responded to the survey. The survey was collected as an electronic survey on Qualtrics, which respondents could access via an internet link or QR code.

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

The researchers have anonymised the data by classifying and removing variables. The year of beginning of higher education K35, completed degrees K36, country of birth K39, mother's and father's country of birth K40 and K41 and Finnish citizenship K42 have been removed from the data. New classified variables have been created for field of education K4 and year of birth K32.

To prevent identification of respondents, the faculty variable (K3) was deleted from the data at 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

Kestilä-Kekkonen, Elina (Tampere University) & Tiihonen, Aino (Tampere University) & Sipinen, Josefina (Tampere University) & Kekkonen, Maria (Tampere University) & Myllymäki, Aino (Tampere University) & Vahteri, Iina (Tampere University) & Jaakkola, Julia (Tampere University) & Äijälä, Liisa (Tampere University) & Lappalainen, Sanna (Tampere University) & Haataja, Lotta (Tampere University): Tampere University Students' Political Efficacy 2022 [dataset]. Version 1.0 (2024-04-18). Finnish Social Science Data Archive [distributor]. https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3787

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

Haataja, L., Jaakkola, J., Kekkonen, M., Kestilä-Kekkonen, E., Lappalainen, S., Sipinen, J., Tiihonen, A., & Vahteri, I. (2022). Jatkuvalla takamatkalla: Sisäisen kansalaispätevyyden sukupuolikuilu korkeakouluopiskelijoiden keskuudessa. Politiikka, 64(4). https://doi.org/10.37452/politiikka.122454

Related Publications

Haataja, L., Jaakkola, J., Kekkonen, M., Kestilä-Kekkonen, E., Lappalainen, S., Sipinen, J., Tiihonen, A., & Vahteri, I. (2022). Jatkuvalla takamatkalla: Sisäisen kansalaispätevyyden sukupuolikuilu korkeakouluopiskelijoiden keskuudessa. Politiikka, 64(4). https://doi.org/10.37452/politiikka.122454