The Finnish Principal Barometer: Physiological data

The physiological data collection is part of the Finnish Principal Barometer research project, which examines the occupational well-being of Finnish principals and other school leaders from all levels of education. The Finnish Principal Barometer is a longitudinal study conducted in collaboration between the University of Helsinki and the Finnish Principals’ Association. Its aim is to monitor the workload, resources, recovery, and well-being of school leaders. The purpose of the physiological data collection is to complement the survey data collected in the Finnish Principal Barometer by measuring participants’ stress, recovery, and sleep using Firstbeat Bodyguard 2 devices. The measurements produce physiological data based on HRV (heart rate variability), providing information on participants’ everyday patterns of strain and recovery alongside their self-reported survey responses. This allows the project to examine principals’ occupational well-being from the perspectives of both self-reported experiences and physiological measurement data. The Firstbeat measurement period lasts approximately four days. It is scheduled during a work week that suits the participant and is designed to cover both working time and leisure time, so that the data reflect the participant’s ordinary daily life and working days as accurately as possible. During the measurement period, participants also complete an electronic diary using the m-Path application. The diary collects information on participants’ sleep and working hours, background information, and other factors that may affect the measurement results, such as physical exercise, stressful events, or other deviations during the measurement days. Firstbeat measurements have been conducted as part of the Finnish Principal Barometer since 2019. Before 2023, physiological data were collected from a smaller group of participants. Since 2023, the data collection has been carried out more systematically and with a larger number of participants. Between 2023 and 2026, approximately 130 valid physiological measurements have been collected annually from school leaders working in different parts of Finland. The data can be analysed both separately and together with the survey data collected in the Finnish Principal Barometer. The longitudinal data collection also enables the examination of changes across different years. Data collection report 2023-2026: a prief description of samples and procedures of each year. Data management: a brief description of the physiological data processing, including the processing of heart rate variability and definitions of the HRV variables in the aggregated datasets. Descriptive summary of the physiological data: an overview of annual sample sizes, unsuccessful measurements and estimated gender distributions for 2019–2026, as well as regional distributions and representativeness for 2023–2026.