Finnish Migrants Research Articles

Rebound Effect in Personal Values

Returning to a sample of Ingrian Finnish migrants ( N = 136) in which postmigration change in personal values has previously been documented, we investigated the permanency of such value change. Personal values, measured within the framework provided by Schwartz’s (1992) values theory, were previously measured prior to migration and 1 year after migration. We now add a second follow-up, conducted 2 years after migration. At this time, the changes observed at the first follow-up were dissipating. Specifically, Universalism and Security values were now on the decline after having been elevated at the first follow-up (an inverted U-shape), and Achievement values were increasing in importance after having previously diminished (a U-shape). Personal values appear to react to changing social circumstances but then return close to their baseline levels. The results of the present research constitute the first longitudinal evidence for a rebound effect in personal values.

Transnational highly skilled Finnish migrants in Europe: Choosing one's identity

When transnational migration begins to resemble internal mobility, as is the case in the European Union, is there any need for integration into the country of destination, or do intra-European migrants adopt a European identity? This article is based on data collected about highly skilled Finns who have moved within the EU. Most of them continued to form their identity around their country of origin. Nearly 60% of the migrants of the study also identified with Europe, while only one-third identified with their country of residence. The article argues that, for such privileged migrants, the possibility of choice is central to identity formation. Neither the national identity of the new home country nor a European identity per se can substitute the former, more important identity received through socialization. However, moving abroad does have an impact on the ways these migrants ‘do identity’. Adding a dimension of Europeanness to their existing national identity is a way of belonging to a greater collective when the localized identification with the country of residence is not required.

Comparison of Stroke Mortality in Finnish-Born Migrants Living in Sweden 1970–1999 and in Swedish-Born Individuals

A limited number of studies have been found on stroke mortality in migrants showing higher mortality for some groups. Influence of time of residence has been studied by one research group. An earlier study showed a significantly higher number of deaths in Diseases of the circulatory system in Finnish migrants compared with native Swedes. To test the hypothesis of a higher mortality in and a decrease in mortality over time in stroke among Finnish migrants in Sweden. The study was based on National Population data, the study population included 321,407 Swedish and 307,174 foreign born persons living in Sweden 1987-1999. Mean age was lower at time for death for Finnish migrants than native Swedes, men 5.1 years difference and women 2.3 years. The difference decreased over time. The risk of death by stroke was higher for migrants with short time of residence than with long time (≤10 years, OR 1.61-1.36 vs ≥11 year, OR 1.18). Migrants with short time of residence died 9.8-5.3 years earlier than native Swedes. The hypothesis was confirmed and an indication of adjustment to life in the new country was found. International studies show similar results for other migrant groups but further studies are needed to verify if the same pattern can be found in other migrants groups in Sweden and to generalise the findings.

‘We’re Finns here, and Russians there’: A longitudinal study on ethnic identity construction in the context of ethnic migration

In this article, we examine how ethnic Finnish migrants construct their ethnic identities before and after migrating from Russia to Finland. We use a discursive psychological (DP) approach to analyse our longitudinal focus group data. In the analysis, we focus on the ways in which the participants use category labels, rhetorical devices, interpretative repertoires and other discursive resources in accounting for their identities. We also consider the social functions these identity constructions have over the course of migration. In the pre-migration data, participants mostly presented themselves as Finns. In the post-migration data, a larger variety of self-labels was used and the Finnish identity was explicitly problematized. The three main interpretative repertoires used when constructing identities both in Russia and in Finland were the biological repertoire, the repertoire of socialization and the repertoire of intergroup relations.

“Money Is Not Everything and That’s the Bottom Line”

This article highlights and fills gaps in research on migrant elites, traditionally defined as highly educated or professional migrants. The research on elite migrants has often suffered from methodological individualism: elite migrants are depicted as male professionals who shuttle from one work assignment or country to another, unrestricted by family relationships or national borders. My research shows the important role of marriage and family ties in life decisions of elite migrants, who in migration statistics and scholarly discussions appear merely as professionals, highly educated persons, or students. I also contribute to the recent literature that challenges the common assumption that migration is a unidirectional movement from one place to another initiated by a single motive, work or family. My research shows that in reality, for both women and men, multiple motives and multidirectional movements are often involved. Furthermore, my research highlights how elite migrants’ high social status does not necessarily guarantee privileged treatment by the host society or that elite migrants feel a part of the society in which they live. I use international marriages between Finns and Americans in Finland and the United States as a case study. I base my analysis on the 74 interviews that I conducted with American migrants and their Finnish spouses living in the capital region of Finland, in or near Helsinki, and with Finnish migrants married to US citizens and living in the state of Minnesota. In addition, I use responses to an online survey of American-born people who were living in Finland in 2008. I received 106 responses to the survey.

Return migrant status and employment in Finland

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the relative employment levels of return migrants in Finland with regard to their re‐adaptation into the labour market.Design/methodology/approachLongitudinal census data distinguished Finns who had lived abroad and returned to Finland. These return migrants are compared with non‐migrants with regard to employment levels, using logistic regression models that account for sex, age, education, mother tongue and place of residence.FindingsBoth male and female return migrants have odds of employment that are only about half those of their non‐migrant counterparts. The employment differential is stable over time and, consequently, not particularly sensitive to changes in the macroeconomic environment. Relative employment rates of migrants with short periods abroad and long periods in the home country are somewhat higher than those of other migrants, but still lower than those of non‐migrants. Difficulties in readapting into Finnish society are consequently associated with personal characteristics that cannot be observed explicitly but are apparently associated with job‐finding probability.Practical implicationsConsidering that Finland at present has no explicit measures directed towards return migrants, it is suggested that this group should be given more policy attention.Originality/valueThe paper provides quantitative evidence that Finnish migrants have substantial difficulties in finding employment in the home country labour market subsequent to return migration, and that these problems cannot be attributed to structural factors.

Cross-country Employment Propensity of Finnish Migrants: Evidence from Linked Register Data

This paper explores how individual employment propensity interrelates across countries and time, using data that link population registers from Sweden and Finland. Migrants are observed before emigration, after emigration, and in a follow-up in cases both where they were still living in the host country and if they had return migrated. The interrelation is found to be strong, suggesting that migrants’ employment problems need not necessarily be due to failures in integration policies or because of problems in assimilation induced by migration as an event. They could also be explained by the fact that many persons, in latent subgroups, have inherently elevated failure risks.

Double diglossia – lower class writing in 19th-century Finland

Abstract This paper analyses a number of typical features of lower-class writing in 19th-century Finland. The data consists of business letters written by local traders and farmers. These letters are compared to letters by Forest Finns, a group of early Finnish migrants to Scandinavia. The business letters are marked by three distinct influences: the older literary tradition, local dialects and the ‘rising literary genres’ of the 19th century. On the basis of the morpho-phonological level of the corpus texts, it will be argued that the lower-class writers intended to write a standard language, not a dialect.

Migration and smoking: An epidemiological study of Finnish twins in Sweden

Male migrants from Finland to Sweden have been found to have a reduced risk of coronary heart disease after several years in Sweden. Changes in smoking habits may contribute to this reduced risk. A study was undertaken to compare smoking habits in Finnish migrants to Sweden and subjects always living in Finland and to analyse whether the migration may have influenced smoking. The study population consisted of same-sex twin pairs born in Finland younger than 76 years with at least one twin that had migrated to Sweden (n = 1,083 pairs). Smoking habits obtained by mailed questionnaire were compared in migration-discordant twin pairs to take into account early childhood and genetic factors. Immigrants and returnees with a history of smoking had predominantly started to smoke before the migration. Among women, immigrants to Sweden smoked more than never migrants in Finland, odds ratio (OR) 2.1 for current smokers (95% confidence interval CI 1.4-3.3) but this difference was already present before migration. In men there were essentially no differences in smoking prevalence between immigrants and never migrants but heavy smoking was less common among immigrants than among never migrant smokers, OR 0.5 (95% CI 0.2-0.9) and migration was associated with a greater propensity to cease smoking. Migration from Finland to Sweden does not seem to have had a strong influence on smoking among migrants. A favourable trend in smoking habits after migration may in part have contributed to reduced mortality and incidence of coronary heart disease in male Finnish migrants after several years in Sweden.

The partial migration of Fennoscandian Greenfinches Carduelis chloris

Recoveries provided by 14 ringing schemes have been used to investigate the partial migration of Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish and Danish Greenfinches Carduelis chloris. More and longer seasonal movements are made by females than by males, and first‐year birds travel farther than adults. Most Norwegian migrants cross to Jutland before the end of November and, in company with Danish birds, follow the North Sea coasts to the Low Countries and beyond, returning after the end of March. Most Swedish migrants cross to the Danish islands in October and November and join other Danish birds on a south‐westward track somewhat farther from the coast, returning in March, April and May. There is some evidence that Norwegian and Swedish birds pass the Danish natives in a leap‐frog movement. Some Finnish migrants move to Sweden, but the majority follow an independent route to the south‐west after crossing the Gulf of Finland. Other secondary patterns of migration are described. Most of the overseas movements appear to be of the facultative type, in that individuals do not necessarily make the crossing every year.

Eosinophilic Endomyocarditis Complicating Acute Myocardial Infarction

Eosinophilic endomyocarditis (Loeffler endocarditis1) is characterized by blood eosinophilia, refractory congestive heart failure, endomyocarditis progressing to replacement fibrosis, and extensive intracardiac mural thrombosis with frequent peripheral embolic complications.1-4It may occur as an isolated clinicopathologic entity or as part of a broad spectrum of "hypereosinophilic syndromes,"5including such diverse conditions as eosinophilic leukemia,6pulmonary infiltration with eosinophilia (PIE syndrome),7eosinophilic gastroenteropathy,8and disseminated eosinophilic collagen disease.9We believe the case to be described is unique because, clinically, the patient died from acute myocardial infarction associated with cardiogenic shock and conduction disturbances. Autopsy confirmed the diagnosis but also revealed an unsuspected eosinophilic endomyocarditis with involvement of the conduction system of the heart. Patient Summary A 60-year-old Finnish migrant had a history of four hospital admissions in Sweden because of chest pain, the last being in May 1968. When first seen at this hospital in July