Teemu Kemppainen

Use of complementary and alternative medicine in Europe: Health-related and sociodemographic determinants:

Aims: The aim of this research was to study health-related and sociodemographic determinants of the use of different complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) treatments in Europe and differences in CAM use in various European countries. Methods: The study was based on a design-based logistic regression analysis of the European Social Survey (ESS), Round 7. We distinguished four CAM modalities: manual therapies, alternative medicinal systems, traditional Asian medical systems and mind-body therapies. Results: In total, 25.9% of the general population had used CAM during the last 12 months. Typically, only one CAM treatment had been used, and it was used more often as complementary rather than alternative treatment. The use of CAM varied greatly by country, from 10% in Hungary to almost 40% in Germany. Compared to those in good health, the use of CAM was two to fourfold greater among those with health problems. The health profiles of users of different CAM modalities varied. For example, back or neck pain was associated with all types of CAM, whereas depression was associated only with the use of mind-body therapies. Individuals with difficult to diagnose health conditions were more inclined to utilize CAM, and CAM use was more common among women and those with a higher education. Lower income was associated with the use of mind-body therapies, whereas the other three CAM modalities were associated with higher income. Conclusions: Help-seeking differed according to the health problem, something that should be acknowledged by clinical professionals to ensure safe care. The findings also point towards possible socioeconomic inequalities in health service use.

Regional inequalities in self-rated health in Russia: What is the role of social and economic capital?

Using the data from the European Social Survey (round 6, 2012), this article studies regional inequalities in self-rated health in Russia and examines the role that socio-demographic factors and economic and social capital play in these differences. Also, the regional variation in the determinants of self-rated health is analysed. The article argues that there are considerable and statistically significant unadjusted differences in self-rated health across Russian Federal Districts. We elaborated these differences by regression adjustments, with the result that some of the differences were explained by our predictors and some were amplified. The odds for good self-rated health were lower in the Volga than in Central Russia due to age and socio-economic composition. In contrast, the regression adjustments amplified the differences of the Northwest and the South in comparison to the Central District. The odds for good self-rated health were considerably lower in the Far Eastern part of the country than in the Central District, independently of the adjustments. While social and economic capital predicted good self-rated health at the individual level, they did not explain regional differences. Interaction analyses revealed regional variation in some of the determinants of self-rated health. Most notably, the effects of age, trade union membership and volunteering depended on the regional context. This article argues that the healthcare reforms that transfer funding responsibilities to regional administration may be dangerous for the already less affluent and less healthy rural regions. Thus, regional governance has a growing importance in preventing increases in health inequalities.

Experience of a Preventive Experiment: Spatial Social Mixing in Post-World War II Housing Estates in Helsinki, Finland

The contingent of large housing estates built in the 1960s and 1970s accounts for almost a half of all high-rises in Finland. The primary ideology in their genesis was to combine industrially prefabricated urban housing development with the surrounding forest landscape—together with a policy of spatial social mixing—to prevent social disorder and segregation. These policies seemed to work as intended until the early 1990s, but have since proved to be insufficient. With Western integration and new information and communication-based economic growth, new trends of population differentiation have emerged. As new wealth has moved out to the fringes of cities, the large housing estates have declined socio-economically—and have been enriched ethnically. This differentiation is structurally produced, works through the regional housing market and, as such, is beyond the scope of the preventive policies pursued. Recent attempts at controlling the regional markets and new forms of spatial social mixing have so far proved difficult.

Perceived social disorder in post-WWII housing estates: recent evidence from Finland

Social disorder in the neighbourhood, such as threatening behaviour, vandalism or public intoxication, has been found to increase feelings of insecurity (Brunton-Smith/Sturgis 2011; Kemppainen et al. 2014) and expose residents to health problems (Steptoe/Feldman 2011). Disorder may also shape moving intentions and behaviour in ways that deepen segregation (Skifter Andersen 2008). In many European countries, post-WWII housing estates have received a negative reputation, one associated with insecurity and disorder (e.g. Hastings 2004; Dekker et al. 2005; Dekker/Van Kempen 2005).

Tenure structure and perceived social disorder in post-WWII suburban housing estates: A multi-level study with a representative samples of estates

Studies on post-World War II housing estates have largely focused on problematic neighbourhoods, and there is a scarcity of literature on housing estates across their entire social scale. Moreover, there is insufficient evidence on the extent to which tenure structure differentiates estates from each other in terms of social disorder. Using a large cluster sample of Finnish estates representing a wide variety of estate neighbourhoods, we examined the implications of tenure structure in terms of social disadvantage and perceived social disorder. We also studied how social interaction and normative regulation mediate the impact of structural estate characteristics. We found that rental domination is associated with social disadvantage, which exposes residents to social disorder, in line with social disorganisation theory. Differences in normative regulation partly explain this association. In contrast, social interaction in the neighbourhood is not associated with the level of perceived social disorder. The theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed.

Socio-economic stratification of life satisfaction in Ireland during an economic recession: A repeated cross-sectional study using the European Social Survey:

Life satisfaction is an understudied topic in literature on socio-economic stratification. Using the European Social Survey data, this study concentrates on the recent economic recession in Ireland, and the socio-economic stratification of life satisfaction before and during economic crisis. We measure stratification multidimensionally using education, occupational social class and income. The results show that the effects of the crisis, which peaked in 2010 in terms of both GDP and life satisfaction, are not experienced equally within the population. Lower strata (lowest income quartile, manual workers and those with basic education at most) are more affected. In the pre-crisis period, life satisfaction appeared to be stratified mostly by income, which was due to the experience of economic hardship. However, during the crisis stratification of life satisfaction took a more complex and deeper form and also basic education and manual labour then began to explain lower life satisfaction.

Human capital, cultural values and economic performance in European regions

Abstract This study examines the cross-sectional association of three value orientations (self-direction, achievement and power) and level of gross domestic product (GDP) in 289 NUTS regions. Regional value aggregates, drawn from Schwartz’s Human Value Scale included in the European Social Survey, are taken to indicate value-based human capital. Regression analysis shows that self-direction, indicating independent thought, action and creativity, is a strong predictor for regional GDP after controlling for standard control variables and spatial autocorrelation. Additionally, analysis implements welfare regimes as indicators of larger socio-historic frames and finds significant geographical variations within these frames regarding the relationship between prevailing value climate and level of economic performance. The study contrasts perspectives from economic geography and cultural studies to the literature on alternative definitions and measures for human capital and argues that a synthesis of these perspectives can enrich one’s understanding of the economic geography in Europe.

Predicting the gross domestic product (GDP) of 289 NUTS regions in Europe with subjective indicators for human and social capital

Most of the aggregate-level analyses of the relationship between objective and subjective measures for well-being have limited themselves to the measures of national gross domestic product (GDP) and mean life satisfaction. We develop this line of research by embedding the analysis into the context of 289 NUTS (Nomenclature des Unités Territoriales Statistiques) regions in Europe and replacing the simple life satisfaction measure with measures of active human functioning. We suggest that the measures of personal and social well-being, as they are operationalized in the 6th Round of the European Social Survey (ESS) questionnaire, can be treated as subjective indicators for social and human capital and, thereby, can be associated with the regional level GDP in cross-sectional analysis. The empirical analysis shows that the indicator for ‘social trust’ appears to have a positive and significant correlation with regional GDP. The analysis also distinguishes another form of social capital; ‘social contact and support’, reflecting the relative frequency and quantity of social support, which also shows a positive relationship with regional GDP. Concerning subjective human capital, the strongest predictor for regional GDP appears to be the aggregated sense of ‘competence and meaning’ in the regions. These effects proved robust after including the objective control variables (population density, intramural research and development (R&D) expenditure, share of tertiary-educated population and employment).