Nordic Nations Research Articles

Navigating employment and overeducation: comparative study of immigrant experiences in 17 Western European nations

ABSTRACT The labor market integration of migrants, focusing on employment and job quality, differs notably across Southern and Continental-Northern European nations, often involving trade-offs. Nonetheless, little is known about whether these diverse migrant inclusion models in European labor markets extend to the combination of employment and overeducation. Additionally, the role of gender in this context remains unclear. While overeducation is more prevalent among immigrants compared to native, its prevalence varies across countries. To fill this gap, we analyzed data from the 2015–2019 European Labor Force Survey in 17 European countries, considering gender and migrant origin – Western vs. non-Western. Results show that non-Western migrants and migrant women face more challenges than Western migrants and male counterparts, respectively. Among males, a trade-off model predominates, with low employment penalties but high overeducation penalties in Mediterranean countries, and vice versa in Continental and some Nordic nations. For females, those in Southern Europe align with the Mediterranean trade-off model, while those in most Continental and Nordic countries experience a double penalty. In Liberal countries, male migrants tend toward the Mediterranean trade-off model, while female migrants align with the integration model.

Dynamics of legal structure and geopolitical influence on carbon tax in response to green transportation

This study examines the dynamic influence of legal structure, geopolitical risk on carbon taxes in response to monetary and labor policies in Nordic countries and Canadian provinces. The study examines eight carbon taxes collected from Nordic nations and Canadian provinces from 1990 to 2023. The Local Projections Difference in Difference model augments the panel Ordinary Least Squares approach. The Nordic countries obtain approximately 0.13 % carbon reductions in passenger emissions while freight carbon emissions increase; in contrast, Canada achieves 0.04 % carbon reductions in passenger emissions while freight carbon emissions achieve 1.25 % of carbon reduction.This study also provides evidence that labor policy autonomy undermines the effectiveness of the carbon price. Overall, carbon tax revenue recycling under labor (monetary) policy impact resulted in a carbon decrease of around 0.34 and 0.24 percentage points. This finding reveals that nations experience significant reductions in carbon emissions when reinvesting carbon tax revenues, highlighting the importance of policy integration tailored to unique country contexts towards achieving climate action.

Северные страны: национальный и региональный брендинг

Currently, global challenges and threats pay much attention to promising political strategies in order to strengthen economic cooperation between states. Therefore, the actions taken by the administrations of the Nordic nations, which are considered to be Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and Finland, are worth examining not only for their successful long-term collaboration but also as a model for implementing innovative approaches to regional development through branding and new technologies. This study provides a comparative analysis of cooperation and an assessment of Nordic positioning approaches through the use of national and regional place brands. The purpose of the research is to explore the application of branding technologies of this study is to study the use of branding technologies to strengthen economic cooperation in the Nordic countries. The research methodology is based on conducting a comparative analysis of cooperation and assessing the approaches to positioning the Nordic countries through the use of common and regional brands. The theoretical significance of the work lies in revealing the possibilities of branding technologies for strengthening economic cooperation between states, as well as in studying successful practices of regional development. The practical significance of the work provides possible recommendations for Nordic governments on the use of branding technologies to strengthen economic cooperation. The results of the study allow us to conclude that the use of branding technologies is a widely used tool in the region, and can contribute to successful regional development.

Examining economic policy uncertainty's impact on environmental sustainability: Insights from nordic nations

The inherent unpredictability of economic policies can create a challenging environment for businesses and government. Such uncertainties may, in turn, have repercussions on environmental quality efforts. Accordingly, this study thoroughly explores the intricate relationships among several vital variables: economic policy uncertainty (EPU), economic growth, natural resource rent (NRR), renewable energy consumption (REC), and environmental quality. The geographical focus of this investigation is four Nordic economies (Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Denmark). The research method is firmly anchored in the STIRPAT framework, with a notable innovative twist. The CS-ARDL simulations estimate the long-term interaction between the series. One key advantage of the estimation model is the ability and robustness to handle reverse causality and endogeneity concerns in time-series econometric models. The empirical findings from this research demonstrate that EPU, economic growth, and NRR are primary indicators of increased CO2 emissions. These factors collectively contribute to the escalating trend of carbon emissions within the Nordic nations. In stark contrast, clean energy consumption emerges as a promising factor that not only counters the rising emissions trend but actively contributes to environmental quality. The importance of transitioning towards cleaner energy sources becomes evident in light of these findings. Policy-makers should recognize that economic policy uncertainty can be a potent driver of environmental pollution and should prioritize formulating transparent and consistent policies that attract investments in clean energy solutions.

A Machine Learning Approach to Finding Factors that Lead to Environmental Friendliness

To maintain a sustainable society, environmental friendliness is necessary, an effort that all countries must take part in. The effort must be pioneered by developed nations with the resources to enact sustainable policies, reduce emissions and conserve energy, from which developing nations will follow the eroded path. Recognizing the factors that promote environmental friendliness is necessary for researchers, policymakers, and activists alike. Several past studies have examined the relationship between environmental performance and various nationwide factors such as economic strength, education, and corruption. In this paper, however, we introduce the machine learning approach Multiple-Linear Regression, allowing several variables to be used in tandem. We constructed a dataset using a variety of variables from a variety of sources, either examined in past literature or justified logically. We measured environmental friendliness through the Environmental Performance Index (EPI), and chose feature variables of Women in Parliament (%), Internet users (%), Freedom Index, Ethnic fractionalization, Technological development, Press Freedom Index, Corruption Perceptions Index, GDP per capita ($), and Education Index, and Population. We found that Multiple-Linear Regression is an effective way of measuring EPI, where several metrics indicate that EPI is almost completely determined by the feature variables. We end the study by presenting the correlations of each of the variables with EPI, and find that almost all exhibit strong linear relationships. These correlations should bring light to the characteristics of environmentally friendly countries, mainly Nordic nations.

Academic freedom in Scandinavia: has the Nordic model survived?

ABSTRACT The Scandinavian states have international reputations for promoting social democratic ideals, which have long been manifest in Nordic universities, e.g. legal protection for academic freedom and university studies free of charge. However, Nordic governments have made new h.e. laws, thereby changing university autonomy and management structures, leading to greater involvement by external personnel in university governance, and reduced academic freedom for academic staff. Utilizing legal data, and a survey of+5,000 academics from the EU states, this paper compares the protection for academic freedom in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. The de jure analysis shows that a single Nordic grouping is not apparent, but that there are two distinct Scandinavian cohorts. The de facto analysis reveals differences between the Nordic nations and other EU states but does neither confirm the Nordic model nor substantiate two regional cohorts identified in previous research and in the de jure analysis.

Nexus between Cyclical Innovation in Green Technologies and CO2 Emissions in Nordic Countries: Consent toward Environmental Sustainability

Several economies have acknowledged that environmental degradation poses a serious danger to worldwide sustainable production and consumption. Policy makers concur that the increased use and production of carbon-intensive technologies has intensified the detrimental consequences of carbon dioxide emissions. In response, a number of nations have reacted by enacting stringent regulations and encouraging green technology innovations across corporate and governmental organizations. Evidence that already exists suggests that research and development is a cyclical process; nevertheless, the non-linear influence of shocks in research and development and innovation in green technologies on CO2 emissions in the Nordic nations has not been well investigated. Using panel data from 1995 to 2019, this research explores the asymmetric link between innovation in green technologies and CO2 emissions. The cointegration link between the chosen variables was validated using the Westerlund cointegration test and the Johansen–Fisher panel cointegration test. The findings of both tests confirm the presence of cointegration association between dependent and independent variables. The outcomes of CS-ARDL revealed that negative shocks in creating green technologies contribute to carbon dioxide emissions during recessions. Second, the findings supported the notion that innovation in green technology may reduce carbon dioxide emissions during times of economic expansion. Thirdly, the GDP increases the CO2 emissions, but the usage of renewable energy decreases CO2 emissions. In addition, the robustness analysis validated the consistency and precision of the existing findings. In summary, the findings suggest that the link between advances in environmentally friendly technologies and levels of carbon dioxide emissions were inversely proportional.

The role of renewable energy consumption and financial development in environmental sustainability: implications for the Nordic Countries

ABSTRACT The Nordic nations have yet to significantly contribute to achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 7 and 13. This predicament might be attributed to fundamental financialization concerns in these nations and renewable energy generation implementation issues. The Nordic nations are fighting to reduce CO2 emissions as a result of these two situations. Dealing with this problem may necessitate a policy shift, which represents the focus of this research. Utilizing data from 1980 to 2020, we analyze the heterogeneous impacts of financial development and renewable energy on CO2 emissions using advanced panel and time-series methodologies. The advantage of the wavelet tools (wavelet coherence, partial wavelet and multiple wavelet techniques) is that they help to capture policy initiatives at different frequencies, i.e., short, medium and long-term. Our empirical outcomes from the CS-ARDL show that both financial development and renewable energy decrease CO2 emissions in the short and long term. Furthermore, the outcomes of the wavelet coherence show negative co-movement between CO2 and renewable energy in each Nordic nation except for Iceland with renewable energy driving CO2 in all frequencies. Additionally, financial development enhances the ‘CO2 emissions-renewable energy consumption’ association, but in the short term, it has no stimulating effect. These findings lead to the recommendation of an SDG-oriented policy framework. While this policy agenda is designed to achieve SDGs 7 and 13, it may also be applied to other nations. The study recommends that the Nordic countries implement measures to boost renewable energy supply through enhanced renewable energy technologies. Abbreviations: ASEAN: Association of Southeast Asian Nations; BRICS: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa; CO2 : Carbon Emissions; CS-ARDL: Cross Sectional Autoregressive Distributed Lag Model; FD: Financial Development; PMG-ARDL: Pool Mean Group Autoregressive Lag Model; VAR: Vector Autoregressive; VECM: Vector Error Corrected Model; MINT: Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria and Turkey; REC: Renewable Energy; SDG: Sustainable Development Goal; SD: Sustainable Development

Radical women? Explaining the gender gap in radical right voting in the Nordic countries

Recent decades have seen an electoral resurgence of radical right parties in Europe. Despite their international reputations as gender-egalitarian welfare paradises, the Nordic nations are no exception to this trend. While Nordic radical right movements have appropriated gender-egalitarian language, the leadership and voting bases of these parties remains overwhelmingly male. The gender gap is generally understood as a reflection of gender differences in structural location and in values. This article examines the importance of attitudinal and structural influences on voting behaviour for men and women. I highlight the role of anti-immigrant sentiment, while also arguing that gender differences in voter demand for radical right politics are intimately linked to differences in party supply. In short, I endeavour to provide a nuanced view of the gender gap in radical right voting, while nonetheless highlighting the importance of anti-immigrant sentiment in radical right politics.

Power Dynamics within Icelandic Nursing: Walking the Fine Line

Like other Nordic nations, Iceland has a reputation of gender-equality, despite 98% of the country’s nursing profession being women. This paper examines power dynamics within the profession. Fifteen semi-structured interviews with nurses were analyzed with a thematic analysis. Our theoretical framework draws on an ecological perspective highlighting nurses’ vulnerability to power dynamics, and Allen’s work on organizational labor and the invisibility of nurses’ ‘glue work’. The findings reveal that the nurses experience power imbalances when their autonomy is restricted in cooperation with other professionals, demanding their time and disrespecting their professional workspace, and they miss support from their supervisors. They feel their professionalism is belittled, and that the gender imbalance hinders equality. For coping and meeting norms and expectations, the nurses use silencing, which with time pressure and unclear boundaries preserve and enhance stereotypical images. Attracting more male nurses could enhance equality, but additional effort at multiple levels is needed.

Energy Diversification: A Friend or Foe to Economic Growth in Nordic Countries? A Novel Energy Diversification Approach

Energy is essential to achieving economic growth, yet the production of energy results in the emission of carbon dioxide, the primary factor in the deterioration of the environment and the acceleration of climate change. In this sense, the diversity of energy sources can contribute to achieving both environmentally sustainable development. This study investigates the relationship between energy diversification and economic growth in Nordic nations by employing a unique measure of energy diversity. The Nonlinear Panel Autoregressive Distributed Lag (NPARDL) approach is utilized in the research, and it looks at data from 1998 through 2018. According to our results, these nations experience favorable economic growth when there is an increase in the long-term diversity of their energy sources. However, in the near term, they have seen negative economic development due to the diversification of their energy sources. According to these findings, energy diversification benefits Nordic economic growth; however, further research is required for developing economies. As a result, further preventative actions must be implemented while simultaneously diversifying energy sources.

Exploring the Causal Relationship among Green Taxes, Energy Intensity, and Energy Consumption in Nordic Countries: Dumitrescu and Hurlin Causality Approach

Improving energy efficiency and minimizing environmental concerns through environmental laws and green taxes are regarded as the primary motivating factors of climate change policy. This analysis clarifies the significance of green taxes in lowering energy use and intensity from 1994 to 2020. As part of our contribution to the literature on energy economics, this study examines how green taxes interact with energy intensity and consumption in four Nordic nations. Environmental policies and sustainable development goals (SDGs) are driving new research into the effects of green taxes on energy consumption and intensity. According to the outcomes of fully modified ordinary least square (FMOLS), panel dynamic ordinary least square (PDOLS), and panel quantile regression, a green tax helps to reduce total energy consumption. It increases energy efficiency by motivating governments, companies, and citizens to encourage innovation in environment-related technology. When it comes to creating a more sustainable environment, the study argues that regulations that ensure the displacement of non-renewable resources while increasing energy efficacy should be implemented.

Nordic War Stories: World War II as History, Fiction, Media, and Memory

Nordic War Stories: World War II as History, Fiction, Media, and Memory

Tox and Detox

Tox and Detox

Do board of directors’ characteristics and executive remuneration impact financial reporting quality? A quantitative analysis of the Nordic manufacturing sector

The current paper aims to analyze the effects of corporate boards of directors’ characteristics, executive remuneration, and several corporate governance characteristics of the manufacturing firms in three Nordic nations (Finland, Sweden, and Denmark) on the quality of financial information, measured by total discretionary accruals (measured by both balance sheet, and cash flow method). The extant literature underpins that boards of directors’ characteristics, executive remuneration, and corporate governance characteristics do affect the quality of financial reporting. Nonetheless, there is a paucity of studies that theorize and explore linkages amongst the above-mentioned determinants to explore their effects on financial reporting quality. The current study uses discretionary accruals as the proxy of financial reporting quality. A higher (lower) level of total discretionary accruals implies a lower (higher) quality of financial reporting. The analysis has been performed based on firm-level unbalanced pooled secondary data of 88 publicly listed firms (698 firm-years) in the manufacturing sector in Finland, Sweden, and Denmark for the period 2013–2020. The results indicate that the ratio of performance remuneration to fixed remuneration of chief executive officers (CEOs) as well as that of executive board members, the experience of board members, and the number of directorship positions that are held by a firm’s board members in other firms (the phenomenon of multiple directorships) adversely affect the quality of financial data. However, the level of education of the board members, board size, and firm size favorably affects the financial reporting quality.

Definition of Parkinson's disease and estimation of its incidence based on nationwide prescription- and diagnostic data

Health registers that cover entire Nordic nations present a valuable source of data for epidemiologic research. However, identification of incident cases based on register data is especially challenging for Parkinson's disease (PD) due to the lack of a clinical gold standard and the existence of diseases with similar symptomatology. Some registered PD diagnoses may therefore be erroneous. Similarly, records of filled antiparkinsonian medicines may reflect other treatment indications or testing the presence of PD pathology.

Fluorine mass balance analysis of selected environmental samples from Norway

The presence of unidentified organofluorine compounds (UOF) has been investigated in recent publication, but their environmental occurrence is still poorly understood. Fluorine mass balance analysis was performed on environmental samples from lake Mjøsa and river Alna (surface water (n = 9), sediment (n = 5) and fish liver (n = 4)) and sewage samples from Oslo (n = 5), to reveal to the fraction of UOF. In samples that had extractable organofluorine (EOF) concentrations above the limit of detection (LoD), more than 70% of their EOF could not be accounted for by the 37 PFAS monitored in this study. The surface water samples from lake Mjøsa had EOF concentrations several times higher than what has been reported elsewhere in Nordic nations. The flux of EOF in river Alna and selected sewage pipes revealed that it was 1-2 orders of magnitude higher than the flux of the measured PFAS. The elevated concentrations of EOF in all samples pose a potential health and environmental hazard, as their composition remains mostly unknown.

Mortality Among Young Adults Born Preterm and Early Term in 4 Nordic Nations

Adverse long-term outcomes in individuals born before full gestation are not confined to individuals born at extreme gestational ages. Little is known regarding mortality patterns among individuals born in the weeks close to ideal gestation, and the exact causes are not well understood; both of these are crucial for public health, with the potential for modification of risk. To examine the risk of all-cause and noncommunicable diseases (NCD) deaths among young adults born preterm and early term. This multinational population-based cohort study used nationwide birth cohorts from Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Finland for individuals born between 1967 and 2002. Individuals identified at birth who had not died or emigrated were followed up for mortality from age 15 years to 2017. Analyses were performed from June 2019 to May 2020. Categories of gestational age (ie, moderate preterm birth and earlier [23-33 weeks], late preterm [34-36 weeks], early term [37-38 weeks], full term [39-41 weeks] and post term [42-44 weeks]). All-cause mortality and cause-specific mortality from NCD, defined as cancer, diabetes, chronic lung disease, and cardiovascular disease (CVD). A total of 6 263 286 individuals were followed up for mortality from age 15 years. Overall, 339 403 (5.4%) were born preterm, and 3 049 100 (48.7%) were women. Compared with full-term birth, the adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs) for all-cause mortality were 1.44 (95% CI, 1.34-1.55) for moderate preterm birth and earlier; 1.23 (95% CI, 1.18-1.29) for late preterm birth; and 1.12 (95% CI, 1.09-1.15) for early-term birth. The association between gestational age and all-cause mortality were stronger in women than in men (P for interaction = .03). Preterm birth was associated with 2-fold increased risks of death from CVD (aHR, 1.89; 95% CI, 1.45-2.47), diabetes (aHR, 1.98; 95% CI, 1.44-2.73), and chronic lung disease (aHR, 2.28; 95% CI, 1.36-3.82). The main associations were replicated across countries and could not be explained by familial or individual confounding factors. The findings of this study strengthen the evidence of increased risk of death from NCDs in young adults born preterm. Importantly, the increased death risk was found across gestational ages up to the ideal term date and includes the much larger group with early-term birth. Excess mortality associated with shorter gestational age was most pronounced for CVDs, chronic lung disease, and diabetes.

Social Exclusion and Subjective Well-being Among Older Adults in Europe: Findings From the European Social Survey.

ObjectivesThe current study aims to examine how social exclusion is related to subjective well-being in older adults across different European regions.MethodsEuropean population-based cross-sectional study design was employed using data sampled from the eighth round of the European Social Survey (ESS). Multiple items for social exclusion were used in this round, including household income, civic participation, frequent meetings with friends and relatives, basic health services, and neighborhood cohesion. Life satisfaction, happiness, and self-rated general health were also assessed. An ANOVA was performed to examine the regional differences related to social exclusion and subjective well-being, while a regression analysis was used to examine the relationship between the social exclusion and subjective well-being.ResultsThere were significant regional differences in the social exclusion and subjective well-being of older Europeans. In addition, older adults in the Nordic nations are more likely to indicate higher levels of subjective well-being and lower levels of social exclusion, while older adults from Central and Eastern European nations tend to report lower levels of subjective well-being and higher levels of social exclusion. Material resources and basic services are highlighted as the most important domains pertaining to life satisfaction, happiness, and general health.DiscussionThe study findings reinforce the inequality in subjective well-being linked to social exclusion across different societies. Both global and country-specific exclusion models in later life should be implemented in order to enhance comparable research and provide insight into EU and national guidelines for interventions to diminish social exclusion.

Trust, transparency, and openness: How inclusion of cultural values shapes Nordic national public policy strategies for artificial intelligence (AI)

Using textual analysis methodology with Hofstede's cultural dimensions as basis for cross-national comparison, the manuscript explores the influence of cultural values of trust, transparency, and openness in Nordic national artificial intelligence (AI) policy documents. Where many AI processes are technologies hidden from view of the citizen, how can public institutions support and ensure these high levels of trust, transparency, and openness in Nordic culture and extend these concepts of “digital trust” to AI? One solution is by authoring national policy that upholds cultural values and personal rights, ultimately reinforcing these values in their societies. The paper highlights differences in how Nordic nations position themselves using cultural values as organizing principles, with the author showing these values (i.e., trust through clear information and information security, transparency through AI literacy education and clear algorithmic decision making, and openness by creating data lakes and data trusts) support the development of AI technology in society. The analysis shows that three cultural values are upheld and influence Nordic national AI strategies, while themes of privacy, ethics, and autonomy are present, and democracy, a societal building block in the Nordics, is especially prominent in the policies. For policy development, policy leaders must understand that without citizen involvement in AI implementation or lacking citizen AI education, we risk alienating those for who these services are meant to utilize and improve access for.