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Browsing by study line "Kultur-, stads- och planeringsgeografi"

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  • Naisen paikka konfliktissa: Median luoma representaatio naisista Afganistanin tilanteessa 
    Eerikäinen, Kiia-Riina (2024)
    Tässä maisterintutkielmassa tarkastellaan mediayhtiö BBC:n uutisartikkeleissa muodostettua representaatiota afgaaninaisesta konfliktitilanteessa vuoden 2021 loppupuoliskolla. Uutisointi Afganistanin konfliktista saavutti huippukohtansa elokuussa 2021 Talibanin astuttua jälleen valtaan. Kansainvälinen yleisö tuntee konfliktin pitkälle median esitystapojen kautta. Afgaaninaisen tila mediassa on rajattua. Naisten mahdollisuudet mediassa esiintymiseen riippuu aiheen viestinnällisen kysynnän lisäksi myös erilaisista poliittisista ja kulttuurisista rajoitteista. Olemassa olevan mediatilan luonteeseen vaikuttavat osittain viestimen arvot ja tavoitteet. Uhriuden tila muodostuu usein kehittyvien valtioiden naisia kuvaavaksi viitekehykseksi konfliktien yhteydessä, mikä kieltää heidän toimijuuttaan ja monipuolisen naiskuvan esittämisen. Konfliktien naiskuvia on hyödynnetty erilaisten symbolisten ja poliittisten merkitysten viestimiseksi yleisölle. Afgaaninaisen mediatilaan astumisen taustoja ja mahdollisuuksia arvioidaan kirjallisuuden avulla, joka tarjoaa näkökulmia median yhteiskunnallisen aseman, sukupuolen voimadynamiikan ja afgaaninaisen kohtaaman eriarvoisuuden ymmärtämiseksi. Aineistoon valituille BBC:n artikkelien teksti- ja kuvaosuuksille suoritetaan laadullinen sisällönanalyysi tarkastelemaan ja analysoimaan uutisoinnin luonnetta ja afgaaninaisen representaatioita tarkemmin. Tutkimuksen aineisto on rajattu koskemaan uutisointia konfliktin puhkeamistilanteesta ja siitä viisi kuukautta eteenpäin. Uutisointi afgaaninaisista valitun ajanjakson sisällä keskittyy näiden ruumiillisuuteen ja kokemuksiin tilassa, joka on tiukasti rajoittunutta ja valvonnan alaista. Vaikka ajallisesti suppean aineiston voidaan nähdä edustavan hyvin rajallista uutisointia konfliktin puhkeamisen jälkeisestä tilanteesta maassa ja naisen representaatiosta, voi siinä nähdä merkkejä pyrkimyksistä monipuolisen naiskuvan rakentamiselle. Artikkeleissa esiintyneet naiset ovat erilaisista taustoista ja erityyppisiä toimijoita. Aineiston ja teorian pohjalta muodostuu lopulta viisi eri teemakokonaisuutta, jotka nimetään vallan, kehojen ja transnationaalisiksi tiloiksi sekä toiseuttamiseksi ja vastarinnaksi. Teemaluokissa tiivistyvät ne aihepiirit, joiden mukaan afgaaninaista tavallisesti käsitellään mediassa. Samalla muodostuu kuva siitä tilallisesta todellisuudesta, jossa afgaaninainen pääsee osallistumaan mediaan. Monipuolisen naiskuvan ja konfliktisensitiivisen uutisraportoinnin muodostamisen yhteydessä käsillä on mielenkiintoinen poliittinen tasapainottelu, jonka yhtenä merkityksenä voidaan nähdä myös aikaisemmista stereotypioista irtaantuminen. Median uutisointityyleihin liittyy kuitenkin vahvasti se, miten asioita on käsitelty aikaisemmin. Representaatioiden laajempaa merkitystä pohdittaessa voidaan esittää kysymys siitä, mikä on kyllin hyvä representaatio ja onko sitä mahdollista luoda, jos siihen liittyy edes osittain toisen puolesta puhuminen.
  • Negotiating Power: Postcolonial Political Dynamics of Wildlife Conservation and Maasai Agency in the Ngorongoro Area, Tanzania 
    Mwiinga, Aura (2024)
    The Maasai, an Indigenous ethnic group of East Africa, have long been intertwined with the landscapes of northern Tanzania. Their traditional pastoralist lifestyle has shaped the region's ecology and cultural heritage. However, the Maasai communities often find themselves marginalized in decision-making processes, where state-led policies and agendas are dominating. In recent decades, Tanzania's wildlife policies, largely adopted from the colonial era, have frequently clashed with the traditional land use practices of the Maasai. Central to these policies have been forced relocations and marginalization policies of Maasai communities from areas designated as protected areas. Through a literature review drawing from political ecology, this thesis aims to contribute to the broader discourse on conservation, governance, and social environmental justice. The Ngorongoro area is known for its biodiversity and natural significance, making it a focal point to examining the Maasai-state relations in Tanzania and shedding light to broader academic understanding of environmental justice in Sub-Saharan Africa. By analyzing the historical context, evolution of conservation policies, and the negotiation strategies of the Maasai, especially in relation to their land rights, this research aims to shed light on how power operates within conservation and development, and the ways in which it has shaped the lives and futures of the Maasai in Ngorongoro area. The conservation policies in Tanzania have been shaped by many historical and contemporary political dynamics. The making of the modern postcolonial state, growing hegemony of neoliberal economic policies, rising of the sustainable development agenda and the general state of civic space and democracy in the country have shaped the evolution of conservation policies in Tanzania, especially in relation to Maasai, who are Indigenous inhabitants of many biodiversity rich areas. The Maasai have experienced decades of long marginalization and dispossession by national politics, ultimately resulting in forced relocations from their ancestral lands. However, the Indigenous group has created various negotiation strategies through which they have actively advocated their rights on local, national and global scales.
  • Nuorten kokema ilmapiiri luokkatilassa – osallistavan tutkimuksen näkökulma 
    Niemi, Liisa (2023)
    Pro gradu -tutkielmassani perehdyn ilmapiirikokemukseen peruskoulun 8-luokan oppilaiden keskuudessa. Ilmapiirin parantaminen voidaan nähdä yhtenä koulujen merkittävimmistä haasteista, ja aiempien tutkimusten perusteella ilmapiirin kehittämiselle on Suomessa tarvetta. Tutkimuksen tavoitteena on selvittää, millaisia kokemuksia oppilailla on heidän luokkansa ilmapiiristä, mitkä tekijät ovat keskeisiä ilmapiirin parantamisessa ja heikentämisessä, sekä millaisilla tekijöillä avoimen ilmapiirin muodostumista voitaisiin edesauttaa. Tarkoituksenani on täten nuorten omia kokemuksia ja ajatuksia kuunnellen lisätä ymmärrystä koululuokkien ilmapiirin merkityksestä heidän hyvinvoinnilleen. Tutkimuksen teoreettinen viitekehys perustuu kahteen näkökulmaan: sosiaalis-kognitiiviseen teoriaan ilmapiiriin vaikuttavista sisäisistä ja ulkoisista tekijöistä, sekä maantieteelliseen teoriaan, jossa oppimisympäristön fyysiset ominaisuudet nähdään ilmapiirin sosiaalis-kognitiivisen teorian tekijöihin vaikuttajana. Tutkimusstrategiana tutkimuksessa käytetään osallistavaa tutkimusstrategiaa, ja tutkimusmenetelmänä käytän kvalitatiivisia ja kvantitatiivisia menetelmiä yhdistävää tutkimusta. Kvalitatiivisena menetelmänä tutkimuksessa on kaksivaiheinen oppituntien havainnointiosuus ja puolistrukturoitu teemahaastattelu. Kvantitatiivisena menetelmänä tutkimuksessa ovat oppilaille jaettavat kyselylomakkeet. Havaintoaineiston, haastattelut ja kyselylomakkeet analysoin laadullisella aineistolähtöisellä sisällönanalyysillä, minkä lisäksi hyödynsin kyselylomakeaineiston analyysissä tilastollisten tunnuslukujen kuvaamista. Tutkimuksen tulokset osoittivat, että luokkatila toimi ilmapiiriä tukevana tekijänä ja keskimääräinen kokemus luokan ilmapiiristä koetiin hyväksi. Tulokset kuitenkin osoittivat myös, ettei ilmapiiri ole välttämättä sitä, miltä se ulospäin näyttää, sillä ilmapiirikokemus vaihteli merkittävästi yksittäisten oppilaiden läsnäolosta riippuen. Merkittävimmäksi yksittäiseksi ilmapiirin rakentajaksi nousikin yksittäisten oppilaiden ongelmakäyttäytymisen vaikutus. Luokan hyvä ilmapiiri määrittyi tulosten perusteella yhdistelmäksi sosiaaliseen vuorovaikutukseen ja yhteishenkeen perustuvia hyväksyviä ja ystävällisiä suhteita, yhteistä tekemistä sekä oppimisvirettä edistävää työrauhaa ja järjestyksen säilymistä. Tärkeimmiksi ilmapiiriä tukeviksi tekijöiksi nousivat edellä mainittuihin seikkoihin liittyvät keinot, kuten luokan sosiaalisen rakenteen tukeminen yhteisillä aktiviteeteilla ja oppilassuhteita parantamalla, työrauhan ja oppimisvireen varmistaminen tiukemmalla kurilla ja luokkajärjestelyn muokkaamisella, sekä tasa-arvoisuuden tukeminen niin opettajan, kuin myös oppilaiden tasolta. Kokonaisuudessaan tutkimus vahvisti näkemystä siitä, että ilmapiiriin vaikuttavat monet eri tekijät. Jaetussa tilassa se muodostuu vuorovaikutuksessa toisten kanssa, mutta on toisaalta myös jokaisen henkilökohtainen kokemus. Se riippuu sekä oppilaiden että luokan sisäisistä ja ulkoisista tekijöistä, eikä sen ymmärtämisessä riitä ainoastaan tiettyjen tekijöiden huomioiminen. Hyvän ilmapiirin saavuttamiseksi eivät riitä vain luokkatilaan, sosiaaliseen rakenteeseen tai opettaja-oppilassuhteeseen vaikuttaminen, vaan hyvässä ilmapiirissä tulee huomioida myös oppilaiden yksilölliset piirteet, tarpeet ja oikeudet. Tässä tarvitaan kokonaisvaltaisia ratkaisuja, joiden kehittämisessä ja toteutuksessa tarvitaan ymmärrystä ja yhteistyötä niin oppilaiden ja vanhempien, kuin myös koulujen ja poliittisten päättäjien puolelta.
  • OmaStadi’s role in urban democracy – citizens’ views on the City of Helsinki’s participatory budgeting program 
    Roikonen, Ida (2022)
    This master’s thesis examines citizens’ opinions and experiences about the City of Helsinki’s participatory budgeting program OmaStadi. OmaStadi is based on a digital platform, where citizens get to propose, discuss and vote for ideas for the city to implement within the program’s budget. OmaStadi was created in 2017 as a part of the City of Helsinki’s new participation and interaction model. Until now, there have been two OmaStadi rounds, the first one in 2018-2019 and the second one in 2020-2021. Governments worldwide have started to implement new citizen participation programs in order to keep citizens engaged in decision-making processes, because the interest towards traditional representative democracy has decreased. Vulnerable groups of people have often been left in the margins in traditional politics, which also calls for new forms of citizen participation. However, previous studies have shown that issues with inclusivity can also occur in modern participation processes and therefore these processes must be planned carefully in order to achieve the desired outcomes. OmaStadi is a relatively new program, and it is important to examine how it could be developed for future rounds. The aim of this research is to identify what could be improved in the OmaStadi process from the citizens’ point of view. I examine how active citizens feel about OmaStadi and their opportunities to impact decision-making through it. I also consider the role of locality and communities in the process and question why some themes and groups of people are underrepresented in OmaStadi. This research was conducted using three qualitative methods, which were semi-structured interviews, participatory observations and social media observations. The interviewees were seven citizens who had actively participated in the OmaStadi process, either by making proposals, campaigning for them or both. The participatory observations and social media observations focused on OmaStadi related events and social media discussions. The findings of this study show that OmaStadi should be made more understandable and accessible for the citizens in order to get more people to participate in it. Vulnerable groups should be better engaged in the process. The lack of resources, such as social networks and digital skills and devices hinders the participation of some groups of people. Strong communities and local campaigning are important factors behind many OmaStadi proposals’ success. Themes addressed in OmaStadi proposals are not as diverse as they could be. Proposals concerning small infrastructural things are strongly represented, while social and cultural themes are downplayed. Involving a more diverse base of citizens in OmaStadi could result to more diversity in the proposals as well. Some active citizens feel that the limitations OmaStadi has for proposals are not clear and the whole process is too long and requires lots of work. For future rounds, OmaStadi could be improved by informing citizens better about the program, making the process clearer and paying more attention to the participation opportunities of different groups of people.
  • Pääkaupunkiseudun kerrostalolähiöiden asuntokannan sekä sosioekonomisen kehityksen yhteydestä 2000-luvulla : Määrällinen tarkastelu kahdella aluetasolla 
    Tavi, Tuomas Aleksanteri (2024)
    Tutkielmassa tarkasteltiin pääkaupunkiseudun kerrostalolähiöiden asuntokannan sekä sosioekonomisen aseman yleistä kehitystä ja näiden välistä yhteyttä 2000-luvulla. Sosioekonomisen eriytyminen eli segregaatio on noussut 2000-luvulla keskeiseksi teemaksi sekä kaupunkitutkimuksessa että -politiikassa. Tutkielmassa eriytymiskehitystä tarkastellaan pääkaupunkiseudun kerrostalolähiöiden tasolla, joiden kehittäminen ja segregaatiokehitykseen puuttuminen on nähty nousevaksi kaupunkisuunnittelulliseksi trendiksi Helsingissä. Tutkielmassa merkittäväksi kerrostalolähiöiden kehittämisen taustavaikuttajaksi kaupunkisuunnittelullisten ideoiden lisäksi nähtiin myös kaupunkien yleinen pyrkimys kasvuun, joka toimii monen toimijan motiivina kehittää ja rakentaa kerrostalolähiöitä. Tutkimusasetelmassa luotiin teoreettinen taustamalli, jolla selitetään kerrostalolähiöiden kehittämisen kaupunkisuunnittelullisia motiiveja 2000-luvulla. Mallin taustalla on näkemys siitä, että kerrostalolähiöiden sosioekonomisen tason kehitys saattaa olla polkuriippuvaisella tavalla urautunutta, jolloin eriytymiskehityksen suunnan muuttaminen näyttäytyy haastavana tehtävänä. Tutkimusaiheen taustalla vaikuttaa kerrostalolähiöiden kehittämiseen liittyvä kaupunkisuunnittelullinen ajatus, jonka mukaan kerrostalolähiöiden asuntokantaan vaikuttaminen sosiaalisen sekoittamisen periaatteen mukaisilla toimilla, voi toimia lähiön attraktiota lisäävänä tekijänä ja siten vaikuttaa myös monipuolistavalla tavalla lähiön asukasrakenteeseen. Pääkaupunkiseudun kerrostalolähiöiden kehitystä tarkasteltiin uudenlaisella kahden aluetason vertailulla, jolla pyrittiin vastaamaan myös kysymykseen siitä, millainen aluetason valinnan vaikutus on siihen, miten tarkasteltava ilmiö näyttäytyy. Kehityksen tarkastelu suoritettiin lähiöiden ominaisuuksia kuvaavien lukujen muutoksen kautta vuosina 2000, 2012 ja 2019. Asuntokannan ominaisuuksien ja sosioekonomisen tason yhteyttä tarkasteltiin regressioanalyysillä, joka toteutettiin tutkimusalueiden asuntojen ominaisuuksien osuuksia kuvaavilla compositional data -muuttujilla Tutkielman tuloksina havaittiin, että pääkaupunkiseudun kerrostalolähiöt ovat 2000-luvulla eriytyneet sosioekonomisesti muista alueista, siten että yhä useampi lähiöistä kuului matalan sosioekonomisen tason ryhmään. Samanaikaisesti asuntokannan ominaisuuksissa ei ole tapahtunut kovin merkittäviä muutoksia, minkä katsottiin kertovan siitä, että eriytymiskehitys on tulkittavissa urautuneeksi. Samanaikaisesti kerrostalolähiöiden vuokra-asuntojen osuus oli kuitenkin yleisesti kasvanut, minkä tulkitaan kertovan yleisestä asumisen finansialisaatiosta näillä alueilla. Analyysi paljasti aikaisemmistakin tutkimuksista tutun omistusasumisen sekä pientaloasumisen osuuksien positiivisen yhteyden alueen sosioekonomiseen asemaan. Uutena muuttujana tarkasteltiin asuntojen huonelukujen yhtyettä sosioekonomiseen tasoon, ja tuloksena havaittiin, että suurten perheasuntojen osuudella on suora sosioekonomista tasoa kasvattava yhteys ja pienillä perheasuntojen osuudella taas sitä laskeva yhteys. Tulokset korostuivat aluetasovertailussa siten, että aluetason valinnalla on vaikutus siihen, miten voimakkaana eriytymisilmiö näyttäytyy. Kun kerrostalolähiöitä tarkastellaan tiukalla aluerajauksella, jolloin alueella ei ole paljon pientaloja, näyttäytyy eriytymisilmiö voimakkaampana kuin laajemmalla aluetasolla tarkasteltuna, minkä katsoa kertovan kerrostalolähiöiden ydinalueiden 2000-luvun urautuneesta kehityksestä.
  • Pääkaupunkiseudun lähiöiden täydennysrakentaminen ja asuinympäristön viihtyvyys Helsingin Sanomien mielipidekirjoituksissa 2018-2022 
    Hartikainen, Kari (2023)
    Maisterintutkielma käsittelee pääkaupunkiseudun lähiöiden täydennysrakentamiseen ja asuinviihtyvyyteen liittyviä näkemyksiä mielipidekirjoituksissa. Työssä tarkastellaan millaisia mielipiteitä täydennysrakentamisesta nostetaan esille asuinympäristön viihtyvyyteen liittyen. Työ pyrkii myös kartoittamaan sitä, millaisista täydennysrakentamisen puolista kumpuaa positiivisia ja millaisista negatiivisia näkökulmia asuinympäristön viihtyvyyttä ajatellen. Lisäksi työssä selvitetään millaisia tahoja voidaan tunnistaa osallisiksi täydennysrakentamiseen ja asuinviihtyvyyteen liittyvissä mielipidekirjoituksissa. Mielipidekirjoitusten analysoinnin menetelmänä toimii sisällönanalyysi. Tutkimuksen empiirisenä aineistona toimivat Helsingin Sanomien sähköisen arkiston mielipidekirjoitukset vuosilta 2018–2022. Hakutulosten alkuseulonnan päätteeksi sisällönanalyysia suoritettiin lopulta yhteensä 87 mielipidekirjoituksen pohjalta. Analyysissä tarkasteltiin mielipidekirjoituksen esiin tuomia näkökulmia täydennysrakentamiseen ja asuinviihtyvyyteen liittyen, toisaalta myös mielipidekirjoituksen yleistä sävyä sekä mielipidekirjoittajan taustatietoja. Analysoituja mielipidekirjoituksia ryhmiteltiin teemoihin niistä esiin tulleiden näkökulmien ja aihepiirien pohjalta. Jaottelua tehtiin myös sillä perusteella, millaisia tahoja voitiin tunnistaa mielipidekirjoitusten taustoilta. Aineistosta suoritetusta sisällönanalyysistä selvisi, että mielipidekirjoituksissa nousi esiin tunnistettavina teemaryhminä kaupunkivihreä, kaupunkikuvan esteettinen olemus, historialliset arvot ja identiteetti sekä täydennysrakentamisen vaikutus terveyteen. Mielipidekirjoitusten vallitsevaksi sävyksi voitiin tunnistaa varauksellisuus ja negatiivisuus täydennysrakentamista kohtaan, varsinkin jos se tapahtui kirjoittajataholle itselleen merkityksellä alueella, kuten omalla asuinalueella. Toisaalta vähemmissä määrin mielipidekirjoituksissa tuotiin esiin myös positiivista puolta täydennysrakentamisen tarjoamista mahdollisuuksista kaupunkiympäristölle. Mielipidekirjoittajiksi voitiin valtaosassa mielipidekirjoituksia tunnistaa yksityishenkilö, joskin mielipidekirjoitusten taustoilta pystyttiin havaitsemaan myös paljon kaupunkiympäristön suunnittelijoita, akateemikkoja kuin kunnallispolitiikan toimijoitakin. Tutkimuksen pohjalta vaikuttaakin siltä, että tehokas täydennysrakentaminen koetaan monilta osin haasteelliseksi asuinympäristöjen viihtyvyydelle mielipidekirjoitusten kontekstissa.
  • Pääkaupunkiseudun toimitila-alueet sijaintiteorioiden ilmentäjänä : Tarkastelussa monikeskuksisuuden näkyminen yritysten toimitilojen sijainnissa 
    Lappalainen, Jouko (2022)
    The location of business premises is based on plethora of different aspects. Inside geographical research tradition one goal has been to explore consistency among these aspects. Theoretical approaches founded on the base of this consistency could be applied to a physical urban environment. Concerning areas of different industries and business premises, these theoretical approaches are strongly linked with accessibility and urban polycentricity. Helsinki metropolitan region is polycentric in sense of functional polycentricity. The central business district of Helsinki is a clear core of the whole region by the amount of employment and population. Although, the hierarchy among centers is not always visible. It is argued, that inside the functional urban area of Helsinki region the relevance of subcenters has increased. The aim of my thesis is to interpret locations of different business premises as result of polycentricity among other urban geography location theories. The main data of my research is the current amount of business premises floor area and accessibility indicators of Helsinki metropolitan area transport network. Results indicate dominant position of Helsinki city center, although the position is not thoroughly distinct. Few sub-centers of the area manage to prove their optimum in sense of accessibility of business premises locations. Acknowledging accessibility and sub-centers as an important aspect of urban form is critical, which the results of this thesis argue for. Yet the topic demands more research based on distinct locations of labor in contemporary society.
  • Paikalliset koulumarkkinat ja kouluvalintojen yhteys kaupunkikoulujen eriytymiseen : tapaus Pohjois- ja Koillis-Helsinki 
    Piispa, Milla (2020)
    The signs of growing segregation between urban schools have shaken the perception of school equity in Helsinki during the last two decades and raised the question of whether school choices made by families are deepening the differences between schools. At the same time, recent observations have brought up concerns whether especially schools located geographically close to each other can be found segregated in Helsinki as well. The purpose of this study is to deepen the understanding of school choice mechanisms and to examine pupils’ school choices in a more limited small-scale area, rather than the whole city. In addition to this, the study seeks to highlight the importance of the local school markets, which has so far received relatively little attention in the Finnish debate. The study concentrates on pupils attending upper comprehensive schools in northern and north-eastern Helsinki, whose school choices have been studied using questionnaire data collected for the MetrOP-project (2010-2013). A total of 794 students who attended upper comprehensive school in northern or north-eastern Helsinki and lived in the area could be extracted from the MetrOP data. The school choices made by the pupils have been studied with statistical methods which made it possible to examine the directions of school choice flows in the research area. Moreover, the study concentrates to analyse whether school choices are guided by the socio-economic characteristics of school’s enrollment area. Socio-economic indicators have been examined using data from Statistics Finland's grid database. The results of the study showed upper comprehensive schools in northern and north-eastern Helsinki were divided into those that attracted students much more strongly and to those that were less popular in the local school market. In addition, identifiable school choice flows from one neighborhood to another could be found in the research area, confirming the assumption of greater attractiveness of some schools in respect to other ones in the vicinity. Socio-economic variables would often seem to explain the popularity of some schools, but the relative wellbeing or disadvantage of school’s enrollment area did not explain all school choices made in northern and north-eastern Helsinki. Therefore, it can be assumed that there is a more multifaceted set of factors influencing the local school markets and the choices made by local families.
  • Paikkakokemukset Suomessa asuvien kansainvälisten tutkinto-opiskelijoiden näkökulmasta 
    Ylimäki, Alina (2022)
    Tutkielmassa tarkastellaan Suomessa asuvien kansainvälisten tutkinto-opiskelijoiden paikkakokemuksia sekä sitä, millä tavoin paikkakokemukset ovat vaikuttaneet heidän integraatiokokemuksiinsa Suomessa. Paikkakokemukset kuvastavat ihmisten muodostamia käsityksiä ja mielikuvia paikoista eri maantieteellisissä perspektiiveissä sekä ajallisessa kontekstissa. Paikkakokemukset syntyvät elämisen kautta, jolloin vieraasta paikasta tulee aistimusten, kokemusten ja ajatusten kautta tuttu ja merkityksellinen. Paikkaan integroituminen ja kiintyminen vaativat usein vahvoja positiivisia paikkakokemuksia. Paikkaan integroitumisen taustalla voi olla vahva osallisuuden kokemus, jolloin yksilö kokee voimakasta paikkaan kuulumisen tunnetta. Paikkakokemus voi olla myös negatiivinen, jonka taustalla voi olla esimerkiksi sivullisuuden kokemuksia. Osallisuuden ja sivullisuuden kokemukset ovat aina yksilöllisiä, minkä vuoksi niiden tutkiminen on erittäin tärkeää ymmärtääksemme ihmisen suhdetta erilaisiin ympäristöihin. Suomessa opiskelevien korkeakouluopiskelijoiden joukko kansainvälistyy vuosittain globaalin liikkuvuuden lisääntyessä sekä työelämän muuttuessa. Kansainväliset opiskelijat ovat erityislaatuisia kansalaisia, sillä heidät nähdään kansallista osaamiskapasiteettia kasvattavana ryhmänä, joiden työllistymismahdollisuuksien parantamisella on mahdollista vastata tulevaisuuden työvoimatarpeisiin. Vaikka Suomi on onnistunut houkuttelemaan kansainvälisiä opiskelijoita korkeakouluihin, harva heistä jää valmistumisen jälkeen Suomeen asumaan. Kansainvälisten opiskelijoiden paikkakokemusten tutkimisen avulla on mahdollista ymmärtää tarkempia syitä opiskelijoiden integraation haasteisiin. Kansainvälisten opiskelijoiden Suomeen integroitumiseen vaikuttavat erilaiset opiskelijan lähtömaahan, suomalaiseen yhteiskuntaan ja korkeakouluyhteisöön sekä yksilön sosiokulttuuriseen taustaan liittyvät tekijät. Tutkimukseen valikoitui kvalitatiivinen tutkimusote, sillä siinä pyritään sukeltamaan syvälle kansainvälisten opiskelijoiden kokemusmaailmoihin. Tutkimusaineisto koostuu kahdeksasta temaattisen kyselytutkimuksen avulla kerätystä esseekirjoitelmasta. Tutkimukseen osallistuneet henkilöt ovat Helsingin yliopistossa opiskelevia kansainvälisiä maisterintason tutkinto-opiskelijoita. Aineisto kerättiin vuoden 2022 tammi-helmikuun aikana. Esseekirjoitelmista saatu aineisto analysoitiin sisällönanalyysin avulla ja jaettiin sopiviin teemoihin tulosten analysoinnin helpottamiseksi. Tutkimuksessa kansainvälisten opiskelijoiden paikkakokemuksia tarkasteltiin mielikuvien, fyysisen ympäristön sekä arjen sosiaalisten vuorovaikutustilanteiden pohjalta. Suurimmalle osalle opiskelijoista Suomi näyttäytyi mielikuvissa tuntemattomana ja jopa hieman synkkänä paikkana. Kun Suomesta tuli opiskelijoille tutumpi, myös paikkakokemukset muuttuivat positiivisempaan suuntaan. Opiskelijoiden silmissä miellyttävät paikat sijoittuivat yliopiston tiloihin, kirjastoihin, luontoon tai Helsingin ydinkeskustaan, kun taas epämiellyttävät paikat yhdistettiin rautatie- ja metroasemien läheisyyteen, joissa koettiin topofobisia kokemuksia ja turvattomuutta. Opiskelijoiden paikkakokemukset ovat luonteeltaan hyvin sosiaalisia ja rakentuvat erilaisten vuorovaikutustilanteiden pohjalta. Osallisuuden tunteita opiskelijat kokivat paikoissa, joissa on mahdollisuus vuorovaikutukseen, porukkaan kuulumiseen sekä vapauteen, kun taas sivullisuuden tunteita koettiin tilanteissa, joissa he eivät osanneet suomen kieltä tai kokivat omien kulttuuristen tottumusten törmäävän paikallisten kanssa. Kodin merkitys nousi myös tärkeäksi kansainvälisten opiskelijoiden paikkakokemusten tarkastelussa. Yleisesti ottaen opiskelijoiden osallisuuden kokemukset aiheuttivat positiivisia paikkakokemuksia, kun taas sivullisuuden tuntemukset aiheuttivat negatiivisia paikkakokemuksia.
  • Paikkaperustainen koulujen kehittäminen maaseutukuntien vetovoiman ja yhteisökehityksen edistäjänä – Tapaustutkimus Parkanosta 
    Hongisto, Pauliina (2022)
    This Master’s thesis examines a project implemented in the municipality of Parkano in northwestern Pirkanmaa in which a new school and cultural campus, Kaarna, was built. There are approximately 600 comprehensive school students and 100 high school students studying in Kaarna. The campus also serves as a center for sports, culture and leisure activities. The campus represents a multifunctional school design model, in which different functions and services are integrated into the school. Such “community center schools” have become more common in Europe in recent years and are gradually gaining popularity in Finland as well. Typically, the aim of multifunctional school is to provide comprehensive support to the local community and to meet the challenges of area’s regional development. While in urban areas the role of schools is considered important especially in preventing segregation, in rural areas the regional significance of schools is more attached to maintaining regional vitality. Despite the differences between urban and rural areas, the core idea is the same: to strengthen and expand the local roles of schools and to support the wellbeing of local communities through schools. This thesis examines the opinions of the educational actors of the municipality of Parkano on the role of their new school in local development. The study aims to understand how the actors responsible for organizing the municipality’s educational services see their possibilities and ability to plan and implement educational services using local circumstances and needs as a starting point. In addition, the study examines whether the educational actors see the local role of the school meaningful solely in the education of children and young people, or do they think that the school also plays a significant role in supporting the overall development of the municipality. The thesis aims to take part in the discussion on how schools can promote vibrant communities and residential areas in rural Finland, and on the other hand, what kind of challenges are involved. In this thesis, the phenomenon is approached through place-based development of schools and community development. The primary data of the study consists of seven expert interviews conducted using the thematic interview method. All three school principals, two municipal officers and two members of municipal council attended the interviews. The description of the case was produced using fact-finding method, and the interviewees’ own views were interpreted using thematic analysis. Alongside with the interview data, information from statistics and the municipality’s own official documents was used to help build the case description. The findings of the study show that in Parkano, the opportunities to implement place-based educational services are generally seen favorable. According to the study, taking local needs into account in the planning of educational services requires, among other things, strong social capital between local educational actors and active co-operation with various actors in the surrounding area. The school was seen to play an important role in promoting the wellbeing of the entire community. The school not only meets the educational needs of the surrounding community, but also plays a key role in the leisure activities of the residents, builds social capital between different actors, improves the image of the municipality and maintains the vitality of the area. A school that is responsive to the needs of its community can also produce positive development outside the school walls. Consequently, the vitality and the resilience of the surrounding community reflects back to school. On the other hand, the study also showed that place-based development of schools will not solve the challenges of regional inequality arising from the wider societal development processes. For example, the positive effects of the school on population development of the area were seen limited.
  • Planning machines in Helsinki : cross-sectoral cooperation, large actors and international ideas on the local planning field 
    Saastamoinen, Uula (2019)
    This thesis examines cross-sectoral interaction, the role of large actors and its implications to citizens as well as the institutional factors shaping the functioning of the planning sector in Helsinki. The aim is to understand the local planning climate and how it has been shaped by global ideas. Helsinki was chosen because the combination of municipal planning monopoly and vast land ownership makes it a unique case study. Research on large actors (referred to as planning machines and global intelligence corps) has illustrated that large actors and the traveling planning ideas introduced by them affect local planning climates. The resources of planning machines can exclude smaller actors from the field, and complicate the efforts of citizens to resist projects executed by them. International planning ideas on the other hand are adopted by planning officials and local politicians, resulting in a more managerial and entrepreneurial role of planning departments and city councils. Ecological planning is an example of a traveling planning idea discussed in the thesis. Both planning machines and traveling planning ideas have been associated with a post-political climate in which alternatives to current development are marginalised, having direct consequences for democracy. A total of nine professionals from public and private sectors were interviewed, and the semi-structured interviews were coded and analysed using computer assisted qualitative data analysis software. Figures and tables of the 20 most frequent codes and three codes with a highest co-occurrence with each of these codes were chosen for the analysis, as well as other codes with relevance to the research questions. The analysis shows that institutional factors place Helsinki in a strong position to negotiate with the private sector. In cross-sectoral cooperation the role of the public sector has become more managerial and the city has advanced its strategic goals concerning the attractiveness and competitiveness of the city region. However, the city has protected its interests in themes such as social mixing, slowing down negative development witnessed elsewhere. New forms of partnerships such as Allianssi model are examples of successful cross-sectoral cooperation where the power relations between sectors are more equal, but seem to favour large actors due to their resource-heavy nature. Procurement legislation also favours large actors for the same reason. Recommendations for further spatial, temporal and scalar research are proposed.
  • Practical Geopolitical Reasoning in the Chinese ‘Taiwan Issue’ Discourses: A Critical Appraisal 
    Mikkola, Santeri (2024)
    The question of reunification, or ‘the Taiwan issue’, stands as one of the paramount geopolitical conundrums of the 21st century. China asserts that Taiwan is an inalienable part its historical geo-body and socio-cultural chronicles under the unifying idea of ‘Chineseness’. Nevertheless, since Taiwan’s democratization process began to thrive in the 1990s, perceptions of national identity have diverged drastically from those in mainland China. Corollary, the appeal for reunification in Taiwan is almost non-existent, and hence achieving peaceful unification under the ‘one country, two systems’ proposal seems highly unlikely. Furthermore, the United States assumes a pivotal role in cross-strait geopolitics, intricately tangling the question of Taiwan into the broader scheme of great power politics. This thesis examines the intricate dynamics of the Taiwan issue by analyzing the practical geopolitical reasoning of the PRC intellectuals of statecraft over Taiwan. The theoretical and methodological foundations of this study draw from critical geopolitics and critical discourse analysis. The primary empirical research materials comprise the three Taiwan white papers published by the PRC. In addition, the analysis is supplemented by other official documents as well as vast array of research literature published on cross-strait geopolitics. Building upon Ó Tuathail’s theorization of practical geopolitical reasoning, the paper presents the ‘grammar of geopolitics’ of the Taiwan issue from the perspective of the PRC. Within this analytical framework, three guiding geopolitical storylines were identified: 1) Historical Sovereignty, 2) National Unity under ‘Chineseness’, and 3) Separatism and External Powers as Antagonist Forces. The results reveals that the CCP has constructed the imperative of reunification as an historically and geographically bound inevitability. Nevertheless, China's increasing geopolitical anxiety over achieving the objective of reunification with Taiwan is evidential in its discourses. This increasing geopolitical anxiety is likely to compel the CCP to adopt more coercive actions in the near and mid-term future if it deems it necessary. Given the developments in Taiwan, Sino-U.S. relations and domestically in China, it seems probable that pressure on Taiwan will continue to mount throughout the 2020s. Much of the strategic calculations and geopolitical discourses constructed regarding the Taiwan issue can be attributed to the CCP's concerns about its own legitimacy to rule. Within its geopolitical discourses, the issue of reunification is rendered to an existential question for China and arguably it constitutes a significant part of the modern CCP’s raison d'être. China’s increasing self-confidence as a superpower is continually trembling the dynamics of international affairs and the geopolitical landscape, particularly within the Indo-Pacific region. Consequently, the project of Chinese geopolitics remains an unfinished business, and warrants further contributions from researchers in the field of critical geopolitics.
  • Practical geopolitical security perceptions of Finland in the 2010s : a Q methodological study 
    Pöllänen, Joonas (2021)
    This master’s thesis attempts to examine views on Finland’s security environment among Finnish security experts and analyse these views through the framework of critical geopolitics. Theoretically, the thesis draws both from earlier literature on perceived state security threats to Finland and the research on security-geopolitics relationship within critical geopolitics. The thesis utilizes Q methodology, a relatively little-known approach with a long history and an active userbase in social sciences. The purpose of the methodology is to study personal viewpoints, in other words, subjectivities, among a selected group of people, the participants of the study. Q methodology employs both qualitative and quantitative methods, and the result of a Q methodological research is a number of discourses, which can be further analysed. The group of participants whose views were examined consisted of nine geopolitical experts and policymakers, all of whom were civil servants of the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Finnish Defence Forces. Three separate discourse were distinguished in this group, on top of which there was a consensus in some issues examined. One of the resulting discourses, which was especially widespread among participants from the Defence Forces, viewed Russia as Finland’s geopolitical Other. According to this discourse, Finland’s security would be highly dependent on this Other, even though it may not be a realistic security threat at the moment. This view is in line with a traditional geopolitical discourse in Finland. Another discourse, which was common among the participants from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, emphasized internal security threats and democracy’s role for security, while it seemingly downplayed Russia’s role. A third discourse, on the other hand, highlighted non-state security issues, such as terrorism. The consensus discourse among the group of participants viewed the European Union strongly as the primary geopolitical framework of Finland. Even though two of the three individual discourses did not highlight Russia’s role, there was an indirectly implied consensus that Finland should not seek close cooperation with Russia in important security matters, such as cybersecurity
  • Regenerative Agriculture and Positive Deviance among smallholder farmers in Taita-Taveta County, Kenya 
    Pirani, Edoardo (2024)
    Agriculture is associated with one-third of global land use, and it is responsible for 21% of total greenhouse gas emissions. At the same time, food demand is going to increase, driven by population growth. Climate change adaptation and mitigation interventions in agriculture are therefore increasingly central to address soil degradation, loss of biodiversity and food insecurity, and Regenerative Agriculture is one of the alternatives proposed to the current agri-food system. Understanding the interlinkages between regenerative agriculture and positive deviance among smallholder farmers in the Taita-Taveta County, Kenya, can be beneficial to align agricultural practices with regenerative agriculture interventions that aim at adapting and mitigating farming activities to climate change, and thus can provide information to decision makers on how to support farmers in this transition. Key informant interviews (11 informants) and a household survey (96 respondents) were used to collect data. A spatial analysis allowed a comparison between three distinct agro-ecological zones, highlighting potential differences in the adoption of regenerative agriculture techniques and the strategies implemented by positive deviants. By studying how geographical factors influence the adoption of agricultural practices, this thesis situates in the field of human geography. The results suggest that both regenerative agriculture adoption and positive deviance are highly context-dependent. Positive deviants typically shifted from subsistence agriculture to high-value crops. By engaging with contract farming, they accessed reliable markets, financing, and inputs, and received private extension services. In the lowlands, positive deviants excelled at coping with water scarcity and mitigating the effects of climate change, while in the highlands they strategically ventured into horticulture at a commercial level. Overall, while regenerative agriculture practices played a role in climate-resilient agriculture, their adoption was not clearly linked with positive deviance.
  • Residents' place image and perceptions towards tourism in Pokhara, Nepal 
    Ikonen, Eveliina (2021)
    Understanding local people’s perceptions towards tourism is important to minimize the negative impacts of tourism and to promote sustainable tourism. This thesis researches residents’ perceptions towards tourism, tourism development and tourism impacts in the city of Pokhara in Nepal. The thesis utilises Doxey’s irritation index and social exchange theory as the theoretical framework of the research. Based on Doxey’s irritation index, local people’s attitudes towards tourism shift from positive to negative as the time goes by and tourism develops. Based on the social exchange theory used in tourism studies, local people’s perceptions towards tourism are more positive the more the locals benefit from tourism and interact with tourists and tourism. This thesis aims to also understand what kind of place image local people have of Pokhara and how residents’ place image is connected to the perceptions they have towards tourism in Pokhara. As earlier tourism research has suggested, local people’s place image and perceptions towards tourism are connected and the more positive place image locals have, the more positive their perceptions towards tourism are. This thesis research is based on qualitative methods. The research data was collected with a qualitative questionnaire distributed online for the residents of Pokhara. Open-ended questions were used in the questionnaire, so that the participants could express their place image and perceptions towards tourism with their own words. The data was analysed by using qualitative content analysis. The results of this research indicate that the majority of the participants is satisfied with the tourism situation in Pokhara. The participants are especially content that tourism creates employment and earning opportunities for local people in Pokhara. However, a few participants expressed some irritation towards tourism situation in Pokhara due to different reasons. Despite some of the more negative perceptions towards tourism, almost all of the participants supported future tourism development in the area. Similarly, almost all of the participants thought that positive tourism impacts in the area are greater than the negative impacts, even though the participants also identified several negative tourism impacts, mainly regarding the environmental degradation and westernisation of local culture, habits, and values. On the contrary to the suggestions of the Doxey’s index, locals’ attitudes towards tourism have remained mostly positive even though tourism has developed in Pokhara in the past decades. Also, the results regarding local people’s involvement with tourism and tourists compared to their perceptions towards tourism are not completely in line with the earlier tourism research using the social exchange theory. The results of this research indicate that participants’ perceptions towards tourism are not always more positive the more residents benefit from tourism and interact with tourism or tourists. On the contrary, the perceptions towards tourism might be even more often negative among the participants who have contact with tourism and tourists than those who have not. The results also indicate that the participants have mostly a positive place image of Pokhara. Even though approximately half of the participants had both positive place image and positive perceptions towards tourism, positive place image will not always automatically result in positive perceptions towards tourism among the local people.
  • Smart heating in small apartments : factors affecting the use of smart thermostats and comfort 
    Dristig, Amica (2020)
    The reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is one of the EU's top priorities for climate goals as it is for Helsinki. Emissions from heating alone stand for over half of the total emissions in Helsinki, presenting smart heating as an excellent opportunity to reduce both energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. Smart heating has gained attention as a means for reducing energy consumption due to its increased energy efficiency and automatic function. Previous studies confirm users having a more significant impact on residential heating consumption than previously considered. However, there is less understanding of what factors influences the user while using smart heating and how smart heating impacts the user. This study aims to contribute to better understand the different influencing factors by focusing on heating behavior and user experience with smart heating thermostats in a residential apartment building in Lauttasaari, Helsinki. A modified version of the Unified Theory of Acceptance of Technology (UTAUT) is used as a base. The model uses the original categories along with two added categories. Instead of using the traditional questionnaire as a method, this research uses semi-structured interviews to get a deeper perspective on the experiences in the post-implementation stage. The results indicate the most evident user experience influences to be information, trust, and the use of itself. Each user's life situation has an impact on the indoor temperature and the heating schedule. The smart thermostat increases control over indoor temperatures and individual heating possibilities due to more setting options. By gaining more control, the smart thermostat enabled the user to disregard the heating by letting the smart thermostat work in the background. Even with an increase of control, some of the participants experienced difficulties using the mobile application. Since this study is limited due to short follow-up time and small sample size, more comprehensive and in-depth research is required for the results to apply to a general population. This study shows a new point of view for influences towards the use of smart thermostats and brings up the potential benefits it can have for the city of Helsinki.
  • Social Sustainability in the Finnish and Swedish Oats Value Chains 
    Voipio, Pauli (2022)
    Achieving goals set for sustainable development and a prosperous life for future generations requires a collective effort, including from people on a private level, national governments, and private organizations alike. Sustainable development is often divided into three pillars, the environmental, economic and social pillars. One sector at the center of this is the agri-food sector, where social sustainability appears to be receiving little attention along its value chains. Oats, a staple product for Finland and Sweden, are considered a sustainable product from environmental and health perspectives, as well as potentially from an economic standpoint, but again social sustainability in the oats value chains is missing from the discussion. This thesis sets out to assess to which extent the social dimension of sustainability is addressed in these oats value chains. Using a mixed methods approach, the thesis explores the different measures used for assessing aspects of social sustainability. Measuring progress in sustainable development is often done through the use of indicators, which many of them are derived from the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Indicators are meant to reveal areas where progress has not been made and policy should be targeted for development. Large organizations are reporting their contributions in annually published sustainability reports. For this, sustainability aspects need to be measurable, which requires converting real-life phenomena into measurable indicators, often quantifiable numbers. This is especially difficult for some social aspects. There is a risk policymaking loses its focus of pursuing development beyond the indicators, but instead is only trying to answer to the indicators. The thesis is applying a qualitative mixed methods approach. First, published sustainability reports are assessed, followed by indepth, semi-structured expert interviews. The research material consists of two published sustainability reports, an unpublished sustainability report comparison document, as well as 11 interviews. The data was gathered in March, April and May 2022. The interviews were analyzed using a qualitative content analysis and divided into themes for analysis. From an objective general standpoint, the oats value chain stakeholders valued all three dimensions of sustainability equally, but through the use of examples of activities the same did not translate into the organizations’ daily activities. Actions and programs were more focused on environmental and economic aspects, and the absence of social sustainability examples in initial responses proposes a slight disregard toward the social dimension. Still, organizations introduced a variety of methods in place for assessing social issues, especially internally. Organizations in the oats value chain are looking to make an impact for a more sustainable future, but measuring performance presents challenges, especially on the social side. Categorizing aspects of social sustainability under different dimensions of sustainability is complicated.
  • Sukupuolittunut haavoittuvuus luonnonkatastrofien yhteydessä 
    Saksa, Noora (2021)
    This thesis examines gendered vulnerability to natural disasters. Due to pre-existing gender inequalities in societies, vulnerability of women and other marginalized groups is heightened during and after disasters. The main purpose of this thesis is to find out what are the structural root causes of gendered vulnerability. Secondly, the purpose is to analyse how these root causes lead to gendered vulnerability before, during and after disasters. Gendered immobility has been identified as a relevant dimension of gendered vulnerability. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis is also to examine gendered immobility in the context of disasters. Thirdly, the aim is to discuss how humanitarian work can reduce disaster-related vulnerability. The topic is approached from the point of view of intersectional feminist geography and feminist political ecology. The data for this thesis consists of 19 research reports, with a focus on gendered vulnerability and the experiences of vulnerable people in Global South countries. Additionally, two humanitarian experts were interviewed from Finnish development and humanitarian organizations. The data was analysed by using qualitative content analysis. The analysis revealed three main root causes of vulnerability. These are: 1) gender roles 2) patriarchal cultural and religious practices and norms 3) limited access to resources. These root causes lead to lack of disaster preparedness, immobility during evacuation and rescue phase, vulnerability during response and recovery phases and lastly, to post-disaster immobility. Humanitarian work can improve the status of vulnerable groups during and after disasters. However, through disaster risk reduction, humanitarian work can also tackle the root causes of vulnerability. By integrating immobility in the context of environmental risks to the research of gendered vulnerability, the results highlight the importance of analysing immobility as a part of gendered vulnerability. In addition, the results point out that vulnerability should be approached as a structural issue, highlighting the need for intersectional feminist approach in vulnerability research and in humanitarian work.
  • Suomalaisten sanomalehtien mielipidekirjoitusten diskurssi tuulivoimasta 2011-2022 
    Kaistinen, Hanna (2023)
    Ilmastotavoitteiden saavuttamiseksi Suomella on tavoite lisätä uusiutuvan energian osuutta. Tuulivoima on nostettu merkittävään asemaan tavoitteiden saavuttamiseksi. Tuulivoimarakentamisen kehitys alkoi nopeutua merkittävästi 1980-luvulla, ja Suomessa myöhemmin vasta 2000-luvun vaihteen jälkeen, etenkin syöttötariffin seurauksena. Tuulivoimaan suhtautumista on alettu tutkia ensimmäisten tuulivoimapuistojen pystytyksen jälkeen, kun projektien havaittiin kohtaavan vastustusta tuulivoimateknologian yleisestä kannatuksesta huolimatta. Tästä kehittyi tuulivoiman hyväksyttävyystutkimus, joka on pyrkinyt selittämään tuulivoiman kohtaamaa vastustusta monitieteisesti. Tässä tutkielmassa selvitetään tuulivoimaan suhtautumista Suomessa tarkastelemalla vuonna 2011–2022 Helsingin Sanomissa ja Maaseudun tulevaisuudessa julkaistuja tuulivoima-aiheisia mielipidekirjoituksia diskurssianalyysillä. Mielipidekirjoituksista löytyi neljä diskurssia: 1) ympäristödiskurssi, 2) terveysdiskurssi, 3) teknis-taloudellinen diskurssi ja 4) sijoitteludiskurssi. Diskurssien sisällöt käsittelevät uusiutuvien energiateknologioiden sosiaalisen hyväksyttävyyden kolmiomallin kaikkia ulottuvuuksia, eli paikallista, yhteiskunnallis-poliittista sekä markkinalähtöistä hyväksyntää. Vahvimmin mielipidekirjoituksilla haluttiin vaikuttaa paikallisen hyväksynnän ulottuvuuteen, jossa oletukset tuulivoimapuiston vaikutuksista kodin lähiympäristöön, sekä kokemukset oikeudenmukaisuudesta ja reiluudesta ovat olennaisia. Mielipidekirjoitukset toimivat vaikutuskeinona ja tapana saada äänensä kuuluviin jo ennen mahdollisen lähiympäristöön sijoittuvan tuulivoimahankkeen lakisääteisiä osallistamisprosesseja.
  • Terveysteknologia osana valtion biopolitiikkaa : Itsensä mittaaminen hallinnan välineenä 
    Summanen, Eetu (2022)
    This master’s thesis examines the role of health technology as part of biopolitical governance and the emergence of self-tracking as a tool of biopolitical control at a time when the development of technology and its ability to measure diverse information about the human body appears to be still accelerating. The fact that self-tracking devices are becoming smaller and less noticeable seems to be making it easier and more effortless to implement them into one’s life. The aim of this thesis is to increase the understanding about how significant factor health technology seems to be in the transmission of biopolitics to the lives of citizens. The hypothesis for the thesis is that the self-tracking that is happening through health technological devices is part of the strategies of states biopolitics and is used as a tool for remote control of citizens’ lives and bodies. The theoretical framework is based on Michel Foucault’s work that has led to the birth and definitions of the concepts governance and governmentality as well as to the birth of the modern concept of biopolitics. It was important to pay attention to the fundamentalities and development of the modern governmentalities and especially to the key elements of the neoliberal one. The theoretical framework of the thesis also included the definition of the term self-tracking, focusing especially on its emergence and nature in relation to modern society. In addition to this, the idea of a more responsible person created by health consciousness also served as a theoretical starting point for the thesis. Research material for the thesis included Finnish state social and health policy documents and interviews done with individuals that were using a health technological device. The aim of the analysis of the documents was to outline the Finnish state's goals in managing the population and the expectations placed on its citizens. The aim of the interviews was to increase understanding of the impact of self-tracking on the lives of individuals and whether factors in the use of the device reflected to the factors in state’s biopolitical goals and societal norms. The interviews followed the style of a semi-structured thematic interview, and the analyses of the material were performed according to the data-driven analysis models of the qualitative research methods. Based on the analysis of the Finnish state's social and health policy documents, state wants citizens to participate more in society. They are also expected to maintain their well-being and develop their skills in working life for being able to pursue longer careers during their lifetimes. Citizens are expected to take more responsibility for their own lives and to be more resilient to changes in working life. The Finnish state recognizes a healthier, well-being citizen as a more efficient member of society. All interviewees’ understanding and awareness of their health and well-being appeared to have improved as a result of self-tracking. The increase in health consciousness was supported by changes in the use of the device during the years of use. The usefulness and harmfulness of self-tracking, depending on whether the use is on a healthy or toxic basis, was also a strong emerging theme. Among the interviewees' ways of living and acting, the factors of the Finnish state's goals for governing the population could be found. Through the results of the thesis, a self-tracking individual can be seen in many ways as an individual resembling an ideal, neoliberal citizen. This was supported by the observation considering all interviewees about how they have become more aware of their own health and the functions of their bodies by measuring themselves, possessing more power to take care of their health through self-tracking. Perspectives on healthy and toxic self-tracking also described the potential of self-tracking on harnessing individuals to control themselves and to be more responsible. The ease in use of the devices also seemed to play a key role in how well biopolitical goals reached an individual’s life. In addition, the status symbolism formed by the physical nature of the devices also seemed to affect to the reach of biopolitical governing. From the point of view of the state's biopolitical goals, a self-tracking individual could be seen as a more ideal neoliberal citizen particularly in terms of the impact of increased health consciousness and responsibility.

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