European values study shows Finns have open minds, but lack solidarity
Finnish seniors more open-minded than other elderly Europeans
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A fresh study indicates that Finnish elderly people tend to be more open-minded than senior citizens in other European countries.
The study by the communications and advertising group Euro RSCG surveyed the views of about 10,000 Europeans from ten different countries. Nearly 1,000 Finns took part.
Finns above the age of 65 were found to have more liberal views on social and economic values than other Europeans in the same age group.
Finnish seniors were largely accepting of economic inequality, as well as free economic competition.
Broad-mindedness was also seen in the values of other Finnish age groups. The competitive spirit appears to run high in the Nordic countries, where 82% felt that free competition is beneficial for growth and employment.
Finns also tend to have greater faith in the blessings of technology and science than citizens of other countries. In Germany, for instance, more than half felt that the impact is exclusively negative.
The study suggests that a "typical European" does not exist. A positive attitude toward environmental protection is the only factor that unites all respondents.
Nationalist-minded Finns do believe in the European ideal, but less less passionately than the European average. Young adults are more pro-European than middle-aged Finns.
Individual freedoms, involving such matters as mothers working outside the home and access to abortion, are generally appreciated in Finland.
Finns with low incomes and little education would nevertheless want to restrict the amount of work that family women do.
Religion causes the greatest amount of discrepancy in all of the countries, including Finland.
More than half of Finnish young people do not feel that faith is an important part of their lives. However, spiritual matters become more important as people get older.
Gender equality is accepted by more than 60% of Finns. The younger the respondent, the more positive the attitudes are toward homosexuality. The result is the same in Italy and Britain, which are the closest to Finland with respect to other values. The greatest differences were between Finns and Poles.
The study suggests that Finland is the European country with the least amount of solidarity. Middle-aged Finns with high incomes tend to be less eager than other Europeans to support free health care for those with low incomes and a state guarantee for a minimum income.
Finnish senior citizens and rural residents are more wary than other Finns over the increase in immigration. However, overall public opinion on the issue is more positive in Finland than in most of the other countries. Only Italians and Poles are apparently more welcoming to immigrants than Finns are.
Helsingin Sanomat
