Abstract
In the prosperous days of the second half of the 1980’s it was in Finland not uncommon to ask whether Finland is an exceptionally modern country. The question was often attributed to foreign observers although it was usually triggered of by Finns and Finnish national ambitions. Yet, the idea of Finland being exceptionally modern was not only a reflection of Finnish ethnocentrism but it was also based on some widespread popular assumptions with roots in the Enlightenment and Western liberalism. The first is the idea that there exists a unique but central model of development towards which all countries move or wish to move. The second is the assumption that modernization can be assessed by some simple indicators of economic development. The third is that modernization as being the most important thing in the world is something all individuals in their right mind should aspire to.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsPreview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Alestalo, M. (1986), Structural Change, Classes and the State. Finland in an Historical and Comparative Perspective. Helsinki: Research Group for Comparative Sociology, University of Helsinki.
Allardt, E. (1985), Finnish Society: Relationship Between Geopolitical Situation and the Development of Society. Helsinki: Research Group for Comparative Sociology, University of Helsinki.
Allardt, E. (1988), “Sosiaalinen rakennemuutos” , Academia Scientiarum Fennica, Yearbook 1987–88, 175–182. (In Finnish; English Summary, “Changes in the Social Structure”).
Deutsch, K.W. (1961), “Social Mobilization and Political Development”, American Political Science Review, Vol. 35, No. 3, 493–514.
Eisenstadt, S.N. (1966), Modernization: Protest and Change. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, Inc.
EVA (The Council of Economic Organizations in Finland) (1992), Indicators of the Finnish Society 1992/93. Helsinki: EVA.
Hebb, D.O. (1955), “Drives and the C.N.S.”, Psychological Review, Vol. 62, No. 2, 243–254.
Kauppinen, T. (1992), Suomen työmarkkinamallin muutos. Helsinki: Työpoliittinen Yhdistys r.y., Julkaisu 1 (In Finnish; English Summary, The Transformation of Finnish Labour Relations in the Light of Corporatistic Choices).
Kennesey, Z. (1985), The Primary, Secondary, Tertiary and Quarternary Sectors of the Economy. Papers of the Nineteenth Conference of The International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, Nordwijkerhout, Netherlands.
Littunen, Y. (1958–59), “Income Security Values at Different Levels of Frustration”. Turku/Abo: Transactions of the Westermarck Society, Vol. 4, No. 4, 143–245.
Martikainen, T. and R. Yrjönen (1991), “Vaalit, puolueet ja yhteiskunnan muutos” (Elections, Policial Parties and Societal Change). Helsinki: Central Statistical Office of Finland, Studies 178.
Olson, M. (1965), The Logic of Collective Action. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press.
Olson, M. (1982), The Rise and Decline of Nations. Economic Growth, Stagflation, and Social Rigidities. New Haven and London: Yale Universtity Press.
Paakkolanvaara, E. (1988), “Informaatioyhteiskunta ja informaatioammatit”. Helsinki: Central Statistical Office of Finland, Studies 145 (in Finnish); English Summary, “Information Society and Information Occupations”.
Pohjola, M. (1992), “Millaista Suomea olemme nyt tekemässä (What Kind of Finland are We Now Making)”, Uudistuuko vai rapistuuko Suomi — hyvinvointiyhteiskunnan uudet valinnat (Is Finland Renewing itself or is it Deteriorating — the New Options of the Welfare State). A seminar report from August 27, 1992, Helsinki (in Finnish).
Porat, M. (1977), The Information Economy: Definition and Measurement, US Department of Commerce, Washington D.C.
Södersten, В. (1980), International economics, Second edition. London: MacMillan
Wicksell, K. (1934), Lectures on political economy, Vol. 1. London: Routledge (Translated from the Swedish original, Föreläsningar i national ekonomi, 1908).
Vuori, S. and P. Vuorinen (1993), “Outlines of the Finnish Innovation System: The Institutional Setup and Performance”, first chapter of this volume.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1994 Physica-Verlag Heidelberg
About this paper
Cite this paper
Allardt, E. (1994). Pecularities of Social and Technological Change in the Finnish Society. In: Vuori, S., Vuorinen, P. (eds) Explaining Technical Change in a Small Country. Physica, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-95913-4_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-95913-4_2
Publisher Name: Physica, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-7908-0760-8
Online ISBN: 978-3-642-95913-4
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive