Decision-Making within the Centre Party of Finland 2001

The aim of the study was to find out how the members and professional politicians of the Centre Party of Finland define the party's internal decision-making and the roles of various actors in it. The respondents were asked how often they participated in party meetings and organizational activities, which factors they believed had influenced the choice of the party leader, and how the respondents communicated with various bodies within the party. The respondents listed the most important tasks of the members of the Centre Party, and they gave their opinions on how much influence they believed the party members had in internal decisions. Sources of information about different party activities were queried, as well as the amount of influence various bodies had on the internal decision-making of the Centre Party. The respondents assessed the activities of the party on the regional and national level, for instance in terms of openness, democracy, topic orientation, and reformism. They were also presented with a set of attitudinal statements on democracy and the exercise of power within the Centre Party. In addition, the respondents' views were probed on the so-called labour market reform programme of the party in the 1999 Parliamentary elections and on the party's favourable stance on the EU membership issue adopted in the 1994 party meeting. Finally, the respondents were asked to give their opinions on various issues, such as nuclear power, supporting small business, registration of same-sex relationships, accepting refugees, and securing services in rural areas. Background variables included the respondent's age, gender, education, marital status, size of municipality of residence, current and previous duties within the party, and the parents' political party preference.