Welfare experienced by the rural population

In western democracies, all forms of government and all measures taken by it seek legitimacy through the concept of welfare. In other words, the acceptability of politics and policy measures is based on their assumed ability to increase people’s welfare and reduce hardship. Measured by objective and financial welfare as well as subjective, or experienced, welfare, Finland is one of the leading and happiest countries in the world, but welfare also shows internal variation between rural and urban areas. Considering the impact of policy measures and the assessment of impact on rural areas, it is also important to measure regional differences in welfare and their development.

Changes in the experienced welfare of the rural population (rural heartland areas, rural areas close to urban areas, and sparsely populated rural areas) are measured using three different indicators: MHI-5 which measures mental health, the indicator of experienced loneliness, and the indicator of experienced financial livelihood.

MHI-5 consists of five questions that measure anxiety, depression and a positive mindset. Responses are placed on a line, one end of which represents psychological stress and the other end a positive mindset. The scale ranges from 5 to 30, with low values being an indication of psychological stress.

Experienced financial livelihood is measured by the following question: “How much have you experienced the following in the previous two weeks: Do you have enough money to meet your needs?” The response options are: 1) Not at all; 2) Little; 3) Reasonably; 4) Almost enough; 5) Enough.

Experienced loneliness is based on the following question: “Do you feel lonely?” The response options are: 1) Never; 2) Very rarely; 3) Sometimes; 4) Fairly often; and 5) All the time.

The indicators are based on the survey data obtained from the “Healthy Finland” survey of the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) for 2022, as well as the collection of data for the surveys of 2024 and 2026. The indicator is linked to the monitoring of specific objective 8 of Finland’s CAP plan, which seeks that, by 2027, the average experienced quality of life has improved in rural heartland areas, rural areas close to urban areas, and sparsely populated rural areas. Changes in the experienced welfare of the rural population are compared with the welfare of the entire population. The indicator can also be specified to monitor changes by ELY Centre region or the regions of Finland.

The indicators are controlled by age and gender, taking into account any changes in the population structure as a result of migration and natural population growth during the programme period (composition effect) regarding these variables.

Link to Healthy Finland survey: https://thl.fi/en/research-and-development/research-and-projects/healthy-finland-survey.

Data from the 2024 data collection will be completed and updated on the site in 2025.