Abstract
This paper is about worldview, value and identity formation, religious socialization and education taking place in different societal settings in Finland and across age groups. The theoretical framework is built around the concept of a worldview combining the theories of attitudes, values and identity. The discussion is mainly based on the results of four research projects conducted among Finnish children and young people: (1) a longitudinal research on the worldview formation of suburban young people from childhood to adulthood; (2) a comparative research on value shifts in young people in times of economic recession; (3) a research on social capital and identity and (4) values and youth transitions. The results of these empirical studies are based on qualitative and quantitative data sets and mixed methods. Applying theories of value and identity with the bioecological model of human development through the life-course the paper discusses worldview formation and religious types of worldview associated with the cognitive development, social learning and socialization of young people. The process of worldview formation, future orientation and ethical action competence of young people is discussed within the frame of socialization and education.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
Finnish is spoken by the majority of 5.5 million people in Finland and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. Finnish is the eponymous member of the Finnic language family and in linguistic terms is intermediate between fusional and agglutinative languages.
The questions were numbered so that data could be computerised. The answers given at different stages of the study were encoded in the same way, thus ensuring the commensurability of the results obtained at different periods.
Factor analysis of data from the three first phases was carried out using the BMDP programme; data from later phases (1992–93 and 1996–97) were analysed with the SPSS-X programme. A single set of 46 variables was used in the final factor analysis of the three first phases. Three-, four- and five-factor solutions were explored using principal components analysis and Varimax rotation. The three–factor solution was the best (large Eigenvalues) and also had strong theoretical foundations: it was consistent with Niiniluoto’s theory of religious, metaphysical and scientific worldviews (1984). Thirty-three of the original set of 46 variables was used in factor analysis of the fourth phase (1992) and 14 were used in factor analysis of the fifth phase (1997). The results given are based on principal components analysis and Varimax rotation (Kaiser normalisation).
Of the 72 young people investigated from childhood to adulthood, six of them had formed a religious view of the world for themselves.
Indexed as paternal social status.
The sources also include international comparative studies of World Values Surveys and European Youth Barometers.
The development of identity and social capital was investigated in a research project which was part of the Academy of Finland Research Programme on Social Capital and Networks of Trust (SoCa).
References
Arnett, J. J. (2004). Emerging adulthood: The winding road from late teens through the twenties. New York: Oxford University Press.
Arnett, J. J., Kloep, M., Hendry, L. B., & Tanner, J. L. (2011). Debating emerging adulthood: Stage or process. New York: Oxford University Press.
Arweck, E., & Jackson, R. (2013). Religion, education and society: Young people, religious identity, socialisation and diversity. London: Routledge.
Bandura, A. (1977). Social learning theory. New York, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Beck, U. (1992). Risk society: Towards a new modernity. New Delhi: Sage.
Bourdieu, P. (1987). Outline of a theory of practise. Cambridge: University Press.
Bowlby, J. (1969). Attachment and loss Vol 1.: Attachment, New York: Basic Books.
Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development. Experiments by nature and design. Cambridge: Harward University Press.
Bronfenbrenner, U. (Ed.). (2005). The bioecological theory of human development. In Making human beings human: Bioecological perspectives on human development (pp. 3–15). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage (Original work published in 2001.)
Bronfenbrenner, U., & Mahoney, M. A. (1975). Influences on human development. Hinsdale, IL: The Dryden Press.
Bronfenbrenner, U., & Morris, P. A. (1998). The ecology of developmental processes. In W. Damon & R. M. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of child psychology, Vol 1: Theoretical models of human development (5th ed., pp. 993–1023). New York: Wiley.
Bryman, A. (2007). Barriers to integrating quantitative and qualitative research. Journal of Mixed Methods Research, 1, 8–22.
Cieciuch, J., Davidov, E., & Algesheimer, R. (2015). The stability and change of value structure and priorities in childhood: A longitudinal study. Social Development,. doi:10.1111/sode.12147.
Coleman, J. S. (1988). Social capital in the creation of human capital. The American Journal of Sociology, 94, 95–120.
Côté, J. E. & Levine C. G. (2015). Identity formation, youth, and development: A simplified approach. Taylor & Francis Ltd.
Côté, J. E. (2002). The role of identity capital in the transition to adulthood: The individualization thesis examined. Journal of Youth Studies, 5, 117–134.
Côté, J. E. (2015). Identity formation, youth, and development: A simplified approach. Taylor & Francis Ltd.
Côté, J., & Bynner, J. (2008). Changes in the transition to adulthood in the UK and Canada: The role of structure and agency in emerging adulthood. Journal of Youth Studies, 11, 251–268.
Côté, J. E., Skinkle, R., & Motte, A. (2008). Do perceptions of costs and benefits of post-secondary education influence participation. Canadian Journal of Higher Education, 38, 73–93.
Deconchy, J. P. (1991). Religious belief systems: Their ideological representations and practical constrains. In the International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 1(1), 5–21.
du Bois-Reymond, M., & Stauber, B. (2005). Biographical turning points in young people’s transitions to work across Europe. In H. Helve & G. Holm (Eds.), Contemporary youth research: Local expressions and global connections (pp. 63–75). Aldershot: Ashgate.
Dundes, A. (1971). Folk ideas as units of worldview. Journal of American folklore, 84, 93–103.
Elkind, D. (1974). Lapset ja nuoret. Jean Piagetin kehityspsykologiaa. (Children and young people. The Cognitive psychology of Piaget.) Jyväskylä: Gummerus.
Erikson, E. H. (1968). Identity: Youth and crisis. New York: W. W. Norton.
Feinstein, L., Bynner, J., & Duckworth, K. (2006). Young people’s leisure contexts and their relations to adult outcomes. Journal of Youth Studies, 9(3), 305–327.
Fowler, J. W. (1981). Stages of faith. The psychology of human development and the guestion for meaning. New York: Harper & Row.
Fraser, N. & Nicholson, L. (1994) Social criticism without Philosophy. An encounter between feminism and postmodernism. The Postmodern Turn. New perspectives on social theory. Ed. Steven Seidman. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 242–261
Furlong, A., & Cartmel, F. (1997). Young people and social change. Individualization and risk in late modernity. Buckingham: Open University Press.
Furset, I., & Repstad, P. (2006). An introduction to the sociology of religion: Classical and contemporary perspectives. Aldershot: Ashgate.
Giddens, A. (1994). Living in a post-traditional society. In U. Beck, A. Giddens, & S. Lash (Eds.), Reflexive modernization: Politics, tradition and aesthetics in the modern social order (pp. 56–109). Cambridge: Polity Press.
Ginsburg, H., & Opper, S. (1979). Piaget’s theory of intellectual development. New Jersey: Illusive Unicorn.
Goldman, R. (1968). Religious thinking from childhood to adolescence. London.
Hammersley, M. (1992). What is wrong with ethnography. London: Routledge.
Helve, H. (1977). Ala - asteen oppilaiden maailmankuva ja uskonnollisuus. Uskontotieteen pro gradu -tutkielma. HY, Uskontotieteen laitos. (The world view and religion of the first and fourth grades students of an elementary school). University of Helsinki, Helsinki.
Helve, H. (1993a). The world view of young people. Helsinki: Academia Scientiarum Fennica.
Helve, H. (1993b). Socialization of attitudes and values among young people in Finland. Young Nordic Journal of Youth Research, 1(3), 27–39.
Helve, H. (2002). Arvot, muutos ja nuoret (values, change and young people). Helsinki: University Press.
Helve, H. (2005). Borders and possibilities in youth research. In H. Helve (Ed.), Mixed method in youth research (pp. 57–81). Tampere: Finnish Youth Research Network and Finnish youth research Society (Juvenes Print).
Helve, H. (2006). Social changes and multicultural values of young people. In Carmen Leccardi & Elisabetta Ruspini (Eds.), A new youth? Young people, generations and family life (pp. 103–124). Aldershot Hampshire England: Ashgate.
Helve, H. (2007). Arvojen muutos nuorisokasvatuksen haasteena. (The change in values as a challenge for youth education). In Nevala, E. And Saastamoinen, M. (Eds.) Nuorisokasvatuksen teoria Perusteita ja puheenvuoroja. Nuorisotutkimusseura, Nuorisotutkimusverkosto julk. 73. Tampere: University Press, pp. 276–312.
Helve, H. (2009). Nuorten vapaa-aika, luottamus ja sosiaaliset suhteet (leisure time of young people, trust and social networks). In Suomalainen vapaa-aika. Arjen ilot ja valinnat (ed.. Liikkanen, Mirja). Helsinki: Gaudeamus, pp. 250–269.
Helve, H. (2015). Re-thinking youth and citizenship. Value groups and citizen types of young Finns. Italian Journal of Sociology of Education, 7(1), 32–66.
Helve, H. (2016). A longitudinal study of world views and a construction of gender ideology. In R. Hämäläinen, H. Pesonen, & T. Utriainen (Eds.), Helsinki study of religions: A reader (pp. 342–369). Helsinki: Study of Religions, University of Helsinki.
Helve, H., & Bynner, J. (Eds.). (2007). Youth and social capital. London: Tufnell Press.
Helve, H., & Evans, K. (Eds.). (2013). Youth and work transitions in changing social landscapes. London: Tufnell Press.
Hirsjärvi, S., & Hurme, H. (2008). Tutkimushaastattelu: Teemahaastattelun teoria ja käytäntö. Helsinki: Gaudeamus Helsinki University Press.
Honkasalo, V. (2011) Tyttöjen kesken. Monikulttuurisuus ja sukupuolten tasa-arvo nuorisotyössä. Helsinki: Nuorisotutkimusverkosto, (diss.).
Hunt, S. J. (2015). Believing vaguely: Religious socialization and christian beliefs in Britain. Italian Journal of Sociology of Education, 7(3), 10–46. doi:10.14658/pupj-ijse-2015-3-2.
Inglehart, R. (1997). Modernization and postmodernization. Cultural, economic and political change in 43 societies. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Inglehart, R., & Welzel, C. (2005). Modernization, cultural change, and democracy. The human development sequence. http://isites.harvard.edu/fs/docs/icb.topic96263.files/culture_democracy.pdf.
Johnsson-Smaragdi, U. (1984). TV use and social interaction in adolescence: A longitudinal study. Lund: Lund University.
Kamppinen, M. (2000). The transformation of time in the information society. Foresight, 2(2), 159–162.
Koltko-Riviera, M. E. (2004). The psychology of worldviews. Educational Publishing Foundation, 8(1), 3–58.
Kuusisto, A. (2011). Growing up in affiliation with a religious community: A case study of seventh-day adventist youth in Finland. Munster: Waxmann.
Leccardi, C. (2012). Facing uncertainty. temporality and biographies. In C. Leccardi & E. Ruspini (Eds.), A new youth: Young people, generations and family life (pp. 15–46). London: Ashgate.
Livingstone, D. W. (1997). The limits of human capital theory: Expanding knowledge, informal learning and underemployment. Policy Options, 18, 6.
Livson, N., & Peskin, H. (1980). Perspectives on adolescence from longitudinal research. In J. Adelson (Ed.), Handbook of adolescent psychology. New York: Wiley.
Lyotard, J.-F. (1985). Tieto postmodernissa yhteiskunnassa. Tampere: Vastapaino.
Mischel, W. (1968). Personality and assesment. New York: Wiley.
Niiniluoto, I. (1981). Tiede, usko ja maailmankatsomus. (Science, belief and Weltanschauung.) In Kanava 9. Forssa.
Niiniluoto, I. (1984). Tiede, filosofia ja maailmankatsomus. Filosofisia esseitä tiedosta ja sen arvosta. (Science, belief and Weltanschauung.) Keuruu: Otava.
Norris, P., & Inglehart, R. (2011). Sacred and secular. Religion and politics worldwide. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Nussbaum, M. (2003). Capabilities as fundamental entitlements: Sen and social justice. Feminist Economics, 9, 33–59. doi:10.1080/1354570022000077926.
Piaget, J. (1929). The child’s conception of the world. London: Humanities Press.
Piaget, J. (1932). The language and thought of the child. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Piaget, J., & Inhelder, B. (1947). Diagnosis of mental operations and theory of the intelligence. American Journal of Mental Deficiency, 51, 401.
Postman, N. (1996). The end of education: Redefining the value of school. New York: Vintage.
Pulkkinen, L. (1984). Nuoret ja kotikasvatus. [Youth and home environment. In Finnish.] Keuruu: Otava.
Punch, K. F. (2005). Introduction to social research-quantitative and qualitative approaches. London: Sage.
Putnam, R. (Ed.). (2002). Democracies in flux: The evolution of social capital in contemporary society. New York: Oxford University Press.
Roberts, S. E. & Côté J. E. (2014). The identity issues inventory: Identity stage resolution. In Prolonged Transition to Adulthood.
Schlitz, M., Vieten, C., & Miller, E. (2010). Worldview transformation and the development of social consciousness. Journal of Consciousness Studies, 17(7–8), 18–36.
Schuller, T., Preston, J., Hammond, C., Brassett-Grundy, A., & Bynner, J. (2004). The benefits of learning: The impact of education on health, family life and social capital. London: Routledge Falmer.
Schutz, A. (1973). The frame of unquestioned constructs. In Mary Douglas (Ed.), Rules and meanings. London: Penguin.
Sen, A. (2005). Human rights and capabilities. Journal of Human Development (Taylor and Francis), 6(2), 151–166. doi:10.1080/14649880500120491.
Smart, N. (1999). Worldviews: Crosscultural explorations of human beliefs (3rd edition; 1st 1983). New York: Scribner.
Stark, R., & Bainbridge, W. S. (1985). The future of religion. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Suppe, F. (Ed.). (1979). The structure of scientific theories (pp. 518–565). Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press.
Tamminen, K. (1991). Religious development in childhood and youth. Helsinki: Academia Scientiarum Fennica.
Vinken, H., & Ester, P. (1992). Modernization and value shifts. A cross-cultural and longitudinal analysis of adolescents’ basic values. In W. Meeus, M. de Goede, W. Kox, & K. Hurrelmann (Eds.), Adolescence, careers and cultures (pp. 409–428). Berlin: De Gruyter.
Vygotsky, Lev S. (1986). Thought and language. (A. Kozulin, Ed.) Cambridge, MA: MIT Press
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Appendix
Appendix
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Helve, H. A longitudinal perspective on worldviews, values and identities. j. relig. educ. 63, 95–115 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40839-016-0021-5
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40839-016-0021-5