Psychological Science
Volume 19, Issue 9, 2008, Pages 831-837

Temperament and migration patterns in Finland (Article)

Jokela M. , Elovainio M. , Kivimäki M. , Keltikangas-Järvinen L.*
  • a Department of Psychology, University of Helsinki
  • b National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health, Helsinki, Finland
  • c Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London
  • d Department of Psychology, University of Helsinki, Department of Psychology, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 9, FIN-00014, Finland

Abstract

Migration is a central determinant of population dynamics and structure. We examined whether three major temperament traits - sociability, emotionality, and activity - predicted migration propensity, selective urban-rural migration, and migration distance in a 9-year prospective study in Finland. The participants were Finnish women and men (N = 1,733) ages 15 to 30 years at baseline. The home municipality's position on the urban-rural continuum was assessed on the basis of the municipality's population density. We found that high sociability predicted migration to urban areas and longer migration distances. High activity increased general migration propensity (including migration to both urban and rural areas). High emotionality increased the likelihood of leaving the home municipality and decreased migration distances, but was not associated with selective urban-rural migration. These data suggest that temperament predicts the self-selection of environments on a demographic scale and may be relevant in understanding population dynamics. copy; © 2008 Association for Psychological Science.

Author Keywords

[No Keywords available]

Index Keywords

urban population Finland Interpersonal Relations Emotions population density Population Dynamics human rural population temperament human relation Young Adult Humans extraversion Adolescent male female Article emotion adult Social Environment migration Motor Activity Choice Behavior Emigration and Immigration decision making Extraversion (Psychology)
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-54049111911&doi=10.1111%2fj.1467-9280.2008.02164.x&partnerID=40&md5=0aac3d0dac835ff82c8afe2be3831c40
DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2008.02164.x
ISSN: 09567976
Cited by: 59
Original Language: English