Papers by Piia-Kaisa Ursin
Differences in Skills Among Secondary School Students in Turku
Explaining children’s social relationships in early childhood: the role of parental social networks
European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, Sep 11, 2023
Social inequality in skills: Exploring the moderating role of extracurricular activities related to socio‐economic differences in non‐cognitive and cognitive outcomes
European journal of education, May 7, 2024
The originality of this thesis has been checked in accordance with the University of Turku qualit... more The originality of this thesis has been checked in accordance with the University of Turku quality assurance system using the Turnitin OriginalityCheck service.
Child Indicators Research, Nov 9, 2017
Children's ability to influence their own lives begins with awareness and knowledge of their righ... more Children's ability to influence their own lives begins with awareness and knowledge of their rights. This ability is then strengthened with the perception that their rights are respected. Identifying the factors that affect these components of rights acquisition is crucial to promote children's agency and growth into active citizenship. This article details a study on 8-year-old children's understanding of their rights and their opinions about respect for their rights in 16 countries using the International Survey of Children's Well-Being (ISCWeB). Multivariate linear regression models were constructed to study the correlates of children's rights outcomes. Within the study sample (N = 17.369), a minority of the children were aware of children's rights and knew about the rights they had. However, the majority of the children felt that their rights were respected. Children's responses showed great variation by country in every dimension of the investigated rights. Depending on the country, children's rights outcomes were most powerfully explained by three indicators: family deprivation and home and school climates. The lower the deprivation score was and the stronger the perceptions of being heard at home and school were, the more aware children were, the more knowledge they had, and the more respect for children's rights from adults they perceived.
BMJ Open, Mar 1, 2018
Objective To assess the impact of allergic diseases on the subjective well-being and life satisfa... more Objective To assess the impact of allergic diseases on the subjective well-being and life satisfaction of primaryschool children. Design Population-based cohort. setting Finnish sample of children ages 10 and 12 from the International Survey of Children's Well-Being. Participants Nationally representative sample of 1947 school children. Main outcome measure Two different instruments to assess the child's own perception of well-being, the short version of the Student Life Satisfaction Scale (SLSS) and the Brief Multidimensional Student Life Satisfaction Scale (BMSLSS). results Altogether, 51.4% of children reported having at least one allergic condition (10.1% asthma, 23.8% eczema and 40.3% seasonal allergic rhinitis). A statistically significant distinction in life satisfaction emerged between non-allergic and allergic children (inferior in the latter). In particular, children with eczema were more likely to report a reduction in life satisfaction compared with non-allergic children (SLSS β=−128.220; BMSLSS β=−90.694; p<0.01). Apart from freedom from eczema, good life satisfaction was associated with a physically active lifestyle. Conclusions Active allergic disease reduces the child's own perception of well-being. During clinical visits, more attention should be paid to the child's psychosocial status and impairments, which may differ substantially from those of parents or medical authorities.
There is a clear consensus amongst educational researchers that school engagement contributes to ... more There is a clear consensus amongst educational researchers that school engagement contributes to students' academic development. However, not all students share the enjoyment of learning and a sense of belonging at school, nor are all of them willing to exert effort in learning and school activities. Students who disengage from school are at risk of a range of adverse academic and social outcomes, which, at worst, culminate in students' decisions to leave school early. Since the beginning of the 1970s, various findings about Finnish students' school engagement have raised concerns along with the question of why Finnish students repeatedly rank lowly in international comparisons of happiness at school. This chapter provides insights into the issue of Finnish student (dis)engagement from school drawing on a range of research and survey data. In our view, student disengagement is a process that develops through an interplay between individual and contextual factors in a vicious circle of negative emotional and cognitive school and learning experiences, and is-if not reversed-rather stable or progressive. For this reason, it is crucial to identify early signs of disengagement and individual, social, and institutional factors associated with it. The origin of the concept of school disengagement lies in the literature related to students with special needs and students dropping out of school. 1 While school dropout is a widespread problem in many education systems around the world, in Finland, dropping out of basic education is rare. In the academic year 2018-2019, there were only 443 comprehensive school dropouts, which made 0.59% of the age
This chapter examines the significance of socioeconomic background (SES) for the educational disp... more This chapter examines the significance of socioeconomic background (SES) for the educational dispositions and aspirations of Finnish comprehensive school leavers. After demonstrating the existence of the relationship between the students' SES background and their dispositions and aspirations, the main question addressed is whether this relationship changes when controlling for the effect of students' academic ability as measured by their literacy skills. In our examination, we draw on a study of 15-year-old lower secondary school students (n = 1058) in Turku sub-region consisting of the city of Turku and ten smaller, surrounding municipalities. The results of our study are mixed. Students with high-level literacy skills have positive dispositions towards learning and education despite their socioeconomic background. The same is, however, not the case with educational aspirations. Among low-SES students, individual ability does not predict high educational aspirations in a similar manner that it does among high-SES students. This finding poses a challenge for the Finnish education system. If SES is a more significant predictor of educational aspirations of an individual than ability or motivation, there are negative effects for both individuals themselves and society. From the individual point of view, self-exclusion of gifted low-SES students from higher education decreases their future labour market opportunities and outcomes. From the societal point of view, in turn, it means that many occupational fields will lose potentially talented and skilful employees. In these respects, the Finnish education system would not only be unequal but also inefficient.
Kouluun sitoutumattomien nuorten tausta ja tulevaisuusodotukset MARKKU VANTTAJA & PIIA AF URSIN &... more Kouluun sitoutumattomien nuorten tausta ja tulevaisuusodotukset MARKKU VANTTAJA & PIIA AF URSIN & TERO JÄRVINEN Koulunkäyntiin sitoutumattomuus peruskoulussa voi ennakoida myöhempää kouluja työelämäpudokkuutta. Sen vuoksi on tärkeää kiinnittää erityistä huomiota oppilasjoukkoon, joka ei syystä tai toisesta ole onnistunut luomaan myönteistä suhdetta koulunkäyntiin ja oppimiseen. Keitä ovat vähiten koulunkäyntiin sitoutuneet nuoret, mitkä tekijät ovat yhteydessä sitoutumiseen ja miten kouluun sitoutuminen heijastuu nuorten tulevaisuudennäkymiin? English summary at the end of the article Johdanto Suomessa on keskusteltu jo vuosikymmenten ajan lasten ja nuorten heikosta kouluviihtyvyydestä ja negatiivisesta suhtautumisesta koulunkäyntiin. Ensimmäisiä aiheeseen liittyviä tutkimustuloksia saatiin 1970-luvun alun kansainvälisessä vertailututkimuksessa, jossa havaittiin suomalaisten lasten kouluun ja opiskeluun asennoitumisen olevan negatiivisempaa kuin monissa muissa maissa. Samansuuntaiset tulokset toistuivat myös 1990-luvun alussa peruskoulun kahdeksasluokkalaisten kouluviihtyvyyttä mitanneessa kansainvälisessä lukutaitotutkimuksessa. Etenkin suoranaisen koulukielteisyyden nähtiin olevan Suomessa varsin yleistä. (Harinen & Halme 2012.) Vuosituhannen vaihtumisen jälkeen tilanne on säilynyt samankaltaisena. Vuonna 2010 tehdyssä kansainvälisessä vertailussa Suomi sijoittui koulusta pitä-Artikkeli on osa Suomen Akatemian rahoittamaa tutkimushanketta "Koulutusjärjestelmät, oppiminen ja yhteiskunnallinen muutos: vertaileva pitkittäistutkimus nuorten koulutuspoluista ja uuden vuosituhannen taitojen oppimisesta Euroopassa, Australiassa, Etelä-ja Pohjois-Amerikassa" (päätösnumero 308306).
Leisure Participation and Child Well-Being: The Role of Family Togetherness
International handbooks of quality-of-life, 2018
This study investigates the links between subjective well-being, family togetherness and leisure ... more This study investigates the links between subjective well-being, family togetherness and leisure time in Finnish primary school children. We hypothesize that leisure time activity is related to perceived well-being and that family togetherness mediates this relationship. The present data are drawn from the International Survey of Children’s Well-Being, Finnish data, which surveyed children between the ages of 8 and 12 in diverse contexts (N = 2840; boys 1381). The Student Life Satisfaction Scale (SLSS) was applied to obtain children’s own perception of their well-being. Family togetherness includes items assessing family functioning, whereas leisure participation is evaluated by frequency of activity. A structural equation model (SEM) was estimated based on ecological system’s theory in order to discover relationships between the above mentioned three life domains. The model was confirmed which supports the use of ecological system’s theory and indicates that children’s well-being is explained in terms of personal, relational and contextual factors.
Alakouluikäisten lasten moniulotteinen elämääntyytyväisyys Suomessa
The Significance of Socioeconomic Background for the Educational Dispositions and Aspirations of Finnish School Leavers
Finland’s Famous Education System, 2023
Student Disengagement in Finnish Comprehensive Schooling
Finland’s Famous Education System, 2023
The originality of this thesis has been checked in accordance with the University of Turku qualit... more The originality of this thesis has been checked in accordance with the University of Turku quality assurance system using the Turnitin OriginalityCheck service.
Kouluun sitoutumattomien nuorten tausta ja tulevaisuusodotukset
Nuorten osallistuminen luupin alla : kyselytutkimus lounaissuomalaisten nuorten yhteiskunnallisesta vaikuttamisesta
Leisure Participation and Child Well-Being: The Role of Family Togetherness
Handbook of Leisure, Physical Activity, Sports, Recreation and Quality of Life, 2018
This study investigates the links between subjective well-being, family togetherness and leisure ... more This study investigates the links between subjective well-being, family togetherness and leisure time in Finnish primary school children. We hypothesize that leisure time activity is related to perceived well-being and that family togetherness mediates this relationship. The present data are drawn from the International Survey of Children’s Well-Being, Finnish data, which surveyed children between the ages of 8 and 12 in diverse contexts (N = 2840; boys 1381). The Student Life Satisfaction Scale (SLSS) was applied to obtain children’s own perception of their well-being. Family togetherness includes items assessing family functioning, whereas leisure participation is evaluated by frequency of activity. A structural equation model (SEM) was estimated based on ecological system’s theory in order to discover relationships between the above mentioned three life domains. The model was confirmed which supports the use of ecological system’s theory and indicates that children’s well-being is explained in terms of personal, relational and contextual factors.
Journal of Communication Disorders, 2021
Introduction: Studies have shown that many children with early language difficulties also have de... more Introduction: Studies have shown that many children with early language difficulties also have delays in social-emotional competencies as well as social-emotional and behavioral problems. It is unclear if these conditions are causally related, if they share a common underlying etiology, or if there are bidirectional effects. Studies investigating these associations have mostly involved children who are already using words to communicate, but it is important to know whether delays in preverbal communication and language development have any effects on these associations. The aim of the present study was to examine associations between preverbal communication and early verbal skills in infancy and subsequent social-emotional competencies and ensuing socialemotional and behavioral problems in early toddlerhood. The role of background factors known to influence early language development was also examined. Methods: The sample consisted of 395 children (51.6% boys) from the Finnish Steps Study cohort. Language was assessed at age 13 months (+ 1 month) with the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory for Infants (CDI-I), and the social-emotional domain was assessed at age < 17 months with the Brief Infant-Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment (BITSEA). Results: Infants with lower preverbal gestural communication and receptive language skills had a higher risk of delays in social-emotional competencies in toddlerhood than children with better communication skills, but not of elevated social-emotional and behavioral problems. The results indicate that lower early communication skills can predict delays in the development of social-emotional competencies, which has been found to be a risk factor for later development of social-emotional and behavioral problems. It is important to monitor early communication skills to provide guidance to parents in supporting early pragmatic communication and language development in infancy, if needed.
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Papers by Piia-Kaisa Ursin