Browsing by Subject "kuluttaminen"

The objective of this master’s thesis is to explore the values that are most important for consumers pursuing financial independence. This thesis also examines value conflicts related to the pursuit of financial independence. The theoretical approach is based on Schwartz's theory of universal basic values and their interrelations. Previous research has shown that consumers pursuing financial independence seek to increase their leisure time, improve their quality of life, enable them to withdraw from the labor market, escape unsatisfactory work and resist consumerism. No previous studies examining the values of those pursuing financial independence have reportedly been conducted. The research material consists of Finnish blog posts about financial independence. A total of 53 blog posts about financial independence from 23 different authors were collected from online blogging websites. Theoretical thematic analysis was used as the method of analysis. The analysis was conducted from an essentialist point of view. The most important values for bloggers pursuing financial independence were self-direction, benevolence, and universalism. A unifying factor of these three values is that in Schwartz's value theory they are positioned on the same value dimension of self-transcendence. Two value conflicts were found in the data. The first value conflict was a conflict between the values of universalism and benevolence in relation to the values of power and achievement. Another value conflict was a conflict between the value of self-direction in relation to the values of tradition and conformity. Based on the results, more flexible working time arrangements, better management, greater meaningfulness of work and a greater sense of control could reduce the exit of these consumers from the labor market. Ecological products and services that increase leisure time, improve well-being, and enhance personal financial management are some examples of goods, which could potentially be targeted at consumers pursuing financial independence.

This study examines future scenarios of textile consumption and production portrayed in Finnish news media and extending to year 2050. Emphasis of the study is on the policy instruments that can potentially support sustainable textile consumption and production. 214 news articles from year 2019 formed the study data. The data was analyzed using theory-guided qualitative content analysis. The analysis was guided by three policy instrument groups: regulation, financial and information instruments. Other references regarding future scenarios of textile consumption and production in general were also collected under the frame of sustainable consumption and production (SCP). A futures table was formed, including descriptions of current state, desirable, threatening and probable textile futures, focusing on the different policy instruments in effect in these scenarios. Five specialists also participated in forming these future scenarios by evaluating the probability and desirability of claims formed from the news data. The data shows that textile and fashion sustainability issues are highly current and form a part of a larger climate change driven criticism on consumerism. If the discussions and plans on the verge of 2020 turn into actions, the most positive scenario suggests that the textile industry is carbon neutral and functions as a circular economy in 2050. For example ecological tax reform, legislation requiring stronger corporate responsibility and new and sustainable textile materials may play a big role in the change. The more unsustainable scenarios might unfold if political regulation lacks ambition, and the values and behavior of consumer masses don’t change fast enough or in a big enough scale to favor sustainable choices. In the specialists’ evaluation most defining phenomenon expected to guide the development of the textile sector in the coming decades were stronger political directing methods, environmental taxation of goods and services and a change towards circular economy. The news data emphasized a need for a highly holistic change in the means of consumption and production, where sustainability is achieved through changes in technology, values and attitudes as well as political and financial structures that drive and support sustainable choices.

Objectives. The aim of the thesis is to find out fifth and sixth graders' perceptions of economic inequality. The focus of the thesis is children's perceptions of economic inequality, the thoughts it evokes, and the meanings children attach to it. Inequality has increased in Finland over the past three decades, especially among families with children, and since the effects of the phenomenon extend not only to adults but also to children, it is worth looking at it from their perspective as well. Methods. The material for the thesis was collected from the fifth and sixth grades of an elementary school located in Helsinki with the help of life stories and thematic interviews. There were 28 life stories and 7 themed interviews. The material has been analyzed by means of material-based content analysis using a phenomenographic approach. Results and conclusions. The fifth and sixth graders linked economic inequality to family life, going to school and spending free time, among other things. The children most clearly identified differences in financial resources based on external signs, such as clothing and goods. The poor had the necessities, but their clothes and belongings did not meet the norms prevailing among children. In peer relationships, economic inequality was most clearly manifested as differences in financial resources. Similar consumption opportunities were seen to create cohesion in peer relationships, but on the other hand, to produce inequality with children. Among the consequences of economic inequality, the children brought up bullying. Being bullied almost always affected children, the financial resources were especially weaker than others. The bully's role was strongly associated with a well-off child. The reasons explaining economic inequality that appeared in the research material were largely realistic. Economic inequality was seen to be caused by wage differences and unemployment. The importance of studying in order to achieve a good profession and thus a better financial result.