Finnish citizens appear to live in a more positive social reality than citizens on average. They are happier, more satisfied with various aspects of their daily lives and more content with their working life. They also highly appreciate their national welfare system which might contribute to the significantly lower numbers of Finns who feel that there is a chance that they could fall into poverty. Regarding societal issues, care of the elderly is a significantly higher concern for Finns compared to the EU in general, both as a current and a future issue. However, preserving the environment is considered to be the main issue faced by the next generation. Finally, Finns are more likely than their fellow citizens on average to believe that the future will be brighter. Their views on the future prospects for Finnish children leading an easier life are particularly optimistic. 1. Living in the EU Today QA1 Taking all things together would you say you are happy or not happy...? Outer Pie - Very happy 6 28% Quite happy Inner Pie - Not happy Happy 8 Happy 93% Practically all Finns say they are very happy or quite happy (93%). This figure is 6 percentage points higher than the already high EU average (8). Socio-demographic factors have a minor influence in Finland: only the unemployed express relatively higher levels of dissatisfaction in their lives but they appear to be happier than the unemployed in Europe on average. QA2 Please say for each of the following how important it is in your life? A. Important fe 55+ retired students 15-24 house persons unemployed Happy Not happy 8 1 86% 9 8% 85% 14% 8 18% 8% 9 8% 1 25% 7 20% Happy Not happy 9 3% 5% 9 3% 98% 5% 96% 4% 84% 16% 90% 10% QA18 I would like to ask you a question about how much trust you have in certain institutions. For each of the following institutions, please tell me if you tend to trust it or tend not to trust it. Leisure 90% A. Tend to trust Work 84% 8 4 5 70% 6 Religion 5 20% Politics 2 43% The council of your city/village The (NATIONALITY) Government The (NATIONALITY) Parliament Political parties Two complementary aspects of life, work and leisure, are valued the most by Finns as is the case for s in general. Conversely, Finns place significantly less importance on politics in their lives (16 percentage points less than the EU average). Finns appear to be significantly more confident about the functioning of their democratic system, trusting certain institutions more than EU citizens on average. The national government and parliament particularly enjoy the trust of over twice as many Finns than s in general. pg 1 of 5
1. Living in the EU Today (continued) QA3 I am now going to read out different aspects of everyday life. For each, could you tell me if this aspect of your life is satisfactory or not? QA5 In your opinion, out of the following, which are the two most important things for getting ahead in life? A. Satisfactory Getting a good education Working hard 45% 6 Your house or flat 9 Knowing the right people The quality of life in the area where you live 86% Being lucky Being smart 1 24% Your state of health 84% Coming from a wealthy family 5% Your standard of living Being a man Other (SPONTANEOUS) 3% Travel facilities for going to work, shopping The shopping facilities The medical services 70% Don't know 0% Finnish citizens, as is the case for s on average, believe that a good education and hard work are keys for getting ahead in life. This is a more strongly held view in Finland than in the EU on average. Conversely, being smart, cited by half as many Finns as s on average, is not seen as a major asset in this respect. The time you have available to do the things you want to do The schools Leisure facilities in your town The childcare facilities The job opportunities 60% 55% Reflecting the high overall level of happiness in Finland, its citizens appear to be more satisfied with various aspects of their everyday life than EU citizens on average. Housing and the quality of life where they live are rated as particularly satisfactory. Conversely, compared to the EU average, Finns are less satisfied about the medical services in their local area. QA25 For each of the following statements, please tell me whether you tend to agree or tend to disagree. 58% 30% 1 People from other ethnic groups are enriching the cultural life of (OUR COUNTRY) We need immigrants to work in certain sectors of our economy 46% The presence of people from other ethnic groups increases unemployment in (OUR COUNTRY) 4 35% The presence of people from other ethnic groups is a cause of insecurity 48% 3 3 The arrival of immigrants in Europe can efficiently solve the problem of Europe s ageing population Tend to disagree Tend to agree 48% 50% 6 Immigration is perceived in a more positive light in Finland than in the EU on average. The high levels of agreement regarding the enriching effect of ethnic diversity and a strong tendency to reject the idea that immigration would increase unemployment are particularly noteworthy. pg 2 of 5
2. Working Life QA10a How confident would you say you are in your ability to keep your job in the coming months? Base: All people in employment Very confident 34% Outer Pie - 53% Inner Pie - Fairly confident Not confident Confident 85% Confident 8 fe Confident Not confident 8 84% 8 86% 1 90% 9 86% 1 8 15% Confident 8 8 9 86% Not confident 8% 16% 1 6% 8% 2 1 Overall, Finns appear to be on a par with their counterparts regarding their level of confidence about holding on their job in the near future. The share of very confident Finns is however slightly higher than the EU average. and occupation appear, to a certain extent, to affect confidence levels. While Finnish men are more confident than men on average, this situation is reversed for Finnish women. Moreover, white collar workers in Finland appear to be significantly less confident about their professional future than fellow s in the same occupational group. QA9 How much do you agree or disagree with the following statements describing positive and negative aspects of your job? Base: All people in employment A. Agree Positive aspects Negative aspects My job allows me to make use of my knowledge and skills 85% My work is too demanding and stressful 25% My job requires me to keep learning new things I work in dangerous 2 or unhealthy conditions 23% My job allows me to balance my professional, family and private life 6 My work is dull and boring 15% My job allows me to take part in making decisions that affect my work My job offers good prospects for career advancement 3 Broadly speaking, Finns appear to be fairly satisfied with their working conditions. Significantly more Finns than EU citizens on average say they have the opportunity to learn new things and at the same time use their existing skills at their job while significantly fewer state that their work is too demanding and stressful. They appear however to be slightly less content than their fellow EU citizens about opportunities to balance work and family life. pg 3 of 5
3. Welfare in Europe QA22.3 To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statements? I feel that there is a risk that I could fall into poverty Agree Disagree 24% 55% Agree 6% Disagree fe 53% 14% 1 10% 25% 15-24 55+ 2 53% 25% 53% 30% 5 23% 56% 8 76% 23% 55% 14% 6 10% 2 56% 7 Outer Pie - Agree Disagree Inner Pie - Neither agree nor disagree house persons unemployed retired 28% 5 28% 5 44% 3 25% 1 6 students 18% 76% Very few Finnish citizens, in comparison to EU citizens in general, feel that there is a risk that they could fall into poverty. Three-quarters, 23 percentage points above the EU average, deny that this is a possibility. Consequently, all socio-demographic figures differ significantly from the EU figures but the patterns between categories remain broadly the same. It can be noted that fes are significantly more likely than s to see poverty as a risk in their life. 8 percentage points separate the gender groups in Finland, while this difference remains low at 2 points in the EU on average. QA20 For each of the following please tell me whether you think it applies to the (NATIONALITY) social welfare system? A. Applies fairly well Is too expensive for the (NATIONALITY) society 3 53% Provides wide enough coverage 5 Could serve as a model for other countries 4 7 Finnish citizens appear to be satisfied with their social welfare system and believe that it could serve as a model in other countries. A considerable 37 percentage points separate the Finnish poll from the EU average on this issue. At the same time, Finnish citizens appear to think that the current welfare system is cost effective since only about a third claim that the system is too expensive for Finnish society. pg 4 of 5
4. Future Perspectives QA26a&b I am going to show you a card with a list of topics. Thinking of (OUR COUNTRY), please tell me which 3 topics from this list currently concern you the most? And which 3 topics concern you the most for the next generation? Health care The gap between the rich and the poor The environment TOP 3 PRIORITIES IN NLAND Current Priorities 5 33% 30% Future Priorities Crime 2 2 35% Unemployment The cost of living Pensions Health care Crime Terrorism The gap between the rich and the poor Immigration The environment Education Helping others Current Future 36% 30% 25% 35% 1 16% 30% 1 30% 2 33% 1 25% 2 25% 23% 1 1 30% 16% 25% 14% 5% 10% 6% 15% 24% 35% 3% 18% 8% 5 10% 2 1 14% While the top three societal concerns in the EU on average (both today and for the future) are unemployment, the cost of living and pensions, the main factors causing uncertainty in Finland are different. Care of the elderly is by far the main concern for the present generation and it still remains in third place when the future generation is considered. EU-wide this topic receives only random mentions and is rated overwhelmingly below the Finnish figures. Regarding the future generation, the environment occupies first place in Finland while it remains below the top three main concerns within the EU as a whole. QA14 In the course of the next five years, do you expect your personal situation to improve, to stay about the same or to get worse? QA17 Generally speaking, do you think that the life of those who are children today will be easier, more difficult or neither easier nor more difficult than the life of those from your own generation? 5% 14% 43% 3% 16% 24% 2 1 46% 64% Outer Pie - Inner Pie - Outer Pie - Inner Pie - Improve Stay about the same Get worse Easier More difficult Neither easier nor more difficult Approximately the same proportions of Finns expect that their personal situation will either stay about the same as at present or improve in the course of the next five years. A small number of Finns, significantly below the EU average, believe that their situation will get worse in the future. While a substantial proportion of Finns believe in the status quo or that there will be an improvement of their personal situation, over a quarter thinks that for the next generation the situation will be worse. This share is, however, overwhelmingly below the EU average i.e. Finnish people are significantly more optimistic about their children having an easier life than they have today. pg 5 of 5