Browsing by Subject "identifikation"

The Nordic countries are united by shared values and similar social systems. Traditionally, the cultures in the Nordic countries have been mostly homogeneous, but due to globalization and increased immigration, the Nordic countries have become increasingly culturally diverse. Does this affect how people perceive and identify with the Nordic countries? The purpose of the thesis is to describe Finnish adolescents' perceptions of the Nordic countries and how they identify with the Nordics. Furthermore, I would like to explore how a different ethnic background from Finnish influences Nordic identification. Background and contextual research consisted of theories on identity and identification and previous studies of Nordic, social and cultural identities. The thesis is a part of the research project NordId, which is part of a research network, whose aim is to explore the challenges facing the Nordic education systems. The thesis was conducted as a qualitative research project with a phenomenographic approach. The data collection was done in April 2019, and the sample consisted of 25 adolescents from an upper secondary school in Finland with broad ethnic diversity. The data, consisting of photographs and interviews, was collected through participatory photography and semi-structured group interviews. It was analysed thematically. From the results three themes emerged regarding what the adolescents considered to be Nordic: nature, welfare state, and culture and traditions. Adolescents identified with the Nordics through belonging, similarities and common traditions, and values within the three themes. Family, nationality, geography, ethnicity and language were relationships and categories that they identified through. The results showed that the adolescents with a different ethnic background from Finnish identified with the Nordic countries the same way as the Finnish do. A slight difference in what the adolescents perceived as Nordic was revealed. The most notable difference was that the adolescents with a different ethnic background emphasized the welfare society, freedom of speech and freedom of religion more explicitly and to a greater extent in the photographs and interviews. The results can promote future Nordic cooperation, by showing what the Nordic region means to young people. In addition, the results can inform the educational system of whether Nordic countries, cultures, and history are adequately taught in the curricula, based on what Finnish adolescents know about the Nordic countries.