This document summarizes the results of a study on the health and living conditions of young Sami people in Sweden. Some key findings: - Young Sami reported experiences of discrimination and unfair treatment from teachers due to their ethnicity. Reindeer herders reported the highest levels of this. - While most reported good overall health, females reported more feelings of sadness, depression, worry and stress than males. - A sense of Sami identity through language, contact with traditional communities, and explanation/defense of Sami culture was associated with greater perceived discrimination. - Alcohol consumption levels were moderate overall with few identified as "risk drinkers", though risk consumption has risen in Sweden overall in recent years

1. Young Sami in Sweden – Health and living condition
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2. Sápmi (Samiland))
One people in four countries
-the Kola Peninsula in Russia
- northernmost Finland
- the coastal and inland region of northern Norway
-parts of Sweden from middle to the north.
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3. Indigenous peoples
The global population of indigenous peoples is
estimated at 400 million in 70 countries.
Most indigenous peoples are to be found in Asia.
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4. How many are The Sámi people?
There are around 70,000 -100,000 Sámi.
• 25,000 in Sweden.
• 40,000 in Norway.
• 6,000 in Finland.
• 2,000 in Russia.
These numbers are only estimations . In Sweden
there are probably 45,000 to 50,000
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5. The Swedish state did not officially recognize the
Sámi as an indigenous people until 1977
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6. Before the Sámi were incorporated into the
national states, they had organised their society
into “siidas” (groups of families). These siiddas
had set boundaries, and hunting and fishing
rights were divided up within each siidda.
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7. 551 Samebyar (sami village)
• There are more than 4,500 reindeer-owners in
Sweden.
• There are around 230,000 reindeers in Sweden.
• The reindeer herding area covers around 40% of
Sweden's land surface.
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8. Purpose
• The aim of this study is to investigate how it
is to be a young Sami in Sweden with
special reference to mental health and the
relations to experience of being bad treated
because of ethnicity and socio-demographic
background factors.
• Compare within the group and between the
Sami youth and other groups .
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9. Method
A qualitative part:
Dialogues and discussions with young Sámi
people
A quantitative part:
- A questionnaire was sent out to 880 people in the
age of 18 to 28, response rate 517 (59%)
-121 schoolchildren aged 13-18 year answered a
questionnaire in school
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10. The Qustionaire consist of several
domains
- Socio-demographic factors
- Experience of discrimination because of ethnicity
- Enculturation factors
- Sense of coherence and self-perception
- Health
- AUDIT, (The Alcohol Use Disorders
Identification Test) screening for ”at risk
drinking”
- Suicide behavior
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11. 18-28 year
What are you doing for your daily living?
• 62 % are working, 33 % are studying
• 1,9 % unemployed or sick
• 2,3 % are occupied in program for unemployed
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12. Connection with traditional ways of
living “ factors of enculturation”
• 10 % were reindeer herders
• 71 % in the older group have near contact with
some “Sameby” and the traditional way of living
with reindeer herding, fishing, hunting or
handicraft making
• 78 % in the younger group had near contact with
some “Sameby”
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13. Enculturation factors
26 % understand and speak Sami (18-28 year)
81 % understand Sami (13-18 year)
68 % talk Sami (13-18 year)
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14. Have you been unfair treated by your
teachers because you are a Sami?
• 15 % in the older group (18-28 year) answered “yes”
• 25 % in the younger group (13-18year) answered
“yes”
• 38 % of the reindeer herders answered “yes”
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15. Have you heard teachers talking about
the Sami people in a bad way?
• 25 % answer ”Yes” in the older group and 16 % in the
younger group
• 42 % of the reindeer herders answer “yes”
• Have other people treated you bad because you are
a Sami?
• 45 % answer ”Yes” in both groups
• 70 % of the reindeer herders answered “yes”
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16. If you or your parents asked for ”home
language ” education in Sami, have you get
it ?
• 36 % answered no (18-28)
• In Sweden there is a law that give the Sami
people right to get education in their native
language.
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17. To explain or defend the sami culture
• Have you been asked to explain about the Sámi
culture?
44 % often
46 % sometimes
• Have you been forced to defend the Sámi culture
or the Sámi way of living?
32 % often
50 % sometimes
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18. Health
All statements have four respons alternatives
NEARLY ALWAYS
OFTEN
SELDOM
VERY SELDOM / NOT AT ALL
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19. I feel healthy
97,8 % of the Males and 93,6 % of Females
• answered often/nearly always
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20. I sleep well
Hälsa
• 95,5 % of the Males and 87,2 % of the Females
answered nearly always/ often
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21. I am in a good mood
Hälsa
• 94,5 % of the Males and 89,8 % of the Females
nearly always/ often
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22. I feel calm and relaxed
Hälsa
• 87,3 % of Males and 75,9 % of the Females
• nearly always/ often
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23. I look forward with joy
Hälsa
• 94,1% of the Males and 92,5% of the Females
nearly always/ often
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24. I feel sad and depressed
• 10,0 % of the Males and 24,2 % of the Females
answered nearly always/ often
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25. I worry about things
nearly always or often
Hälsa
• Male 29,4 % Female 53,4 %
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26. I have a headache
• 4,6 % of the Males and 13,2 % of the Females
answered rather often/very often
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27. I feel irritated
nearly always or often
Male 14,1 % Female 18,3 %
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28. I have enough time for doing things I
Hälsa to do
need
• 61,4 % of the Males and 58,3 % of the Females
nearly always/ rather often
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29. Sense of Coherence
I believe I can have influence in life.
Not at all Very much
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
mean = 8,5
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30. Identity / selfperception
• I am satisfied with my life situation
Very often/ often; Male 91,6 % Female 83,1 %
• I have somebody to talk to about important issues
Very often/ often; Male 88,0 % Female 93,4 %
• I have a good relation to my family
• Very often/ often ; Male 98,2 % Female 94,5 %
• I feel safe
Very often/ often; Male 95,8 % Female 90,8 %
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31. • The reindeer herders don´t feel safe in the same
degree as others
• They don´t feel participatory in important
decisions regarding their situation in the same
degree
• They don´t have somebody to talk to about
important subjects in the same degree
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32. • I think about the meaning of my life very often or
rather often
Male 50,3 %, Female 63,7 %
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33. As more explicit Sámi ethnicity as
more perceived discrimination
• If you talk the native language
• If you are a reindeer herder
• If you had near contact with any Sameby
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34. Diretive from The Swedish Social
Department. Folkhälsa- Lägesrapport
2006
• High consumption of alcohol:
• Men 3,5 bottles of wine or 10 tins strong beer/ week
• Women 2,5 bottles wine or 7 tins strong beer/ week
• Middle consumption:
• Men 2-3,5 bottles wine/ week
• Women 1-2,5 bottles wine/week
• Intense consumption; to drink more than 18 cl liquer, 1 bottles of
wine or 4 tins strong beer at the same time.
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35. HRQL (Health Related Quality of life)
Kidscreen-52
Psysical Wellbeing
Psychological Wellbeing
Moods & Emotions
Social Support
Parents Relations and Homelife
Selfperception
Free Time
School Environment
Bullying
Financial Resourses
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36. aAssociation between Health Related Quality of Life and bad
treatment in Sami school children (13-18 years)
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37. The Alcohol Use Disorders
Identification Test
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38. Risk consumption of alcohol has
increased in Sweden
• Risk consummation depends on
-How often you drink alcohol
- How many glasses you are drinking
- How often you are drinking 6 glasses or
more at the same time
- How often you are drinking to get drunk
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39. Your Alcohol Habits
How often are you drinking alcohol ?
11 % never
38 % once a month or more seldom
44 % 2-4 times/month
7 % 2-3 times/week
1 % 4 times/week or more
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40. Not so many risk-drinkers
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41. Have you had thoughts about committing suicide,
even if you could not do it? H
• 12 % of the men often or sometimes have thoughts
23 % of the women often or sometimes have thoughts.
• To compare with
13 % of the men and 20 % of the women (16-29 year) in a
Swedish study have sometimes in life had thoughts about
killing themselves. (Folkhälsoinstitutets nationella
undersökning 2007)
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42. Suicide behaviour
Have you ever tried to commit suicide?
• 3 % men and 7 % women answer Yes.
• In a national study by The Swedish Institute of Public
Health.(2007)
4 % of the men and 6 % of the women answer Yes
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43. Din syn på självmord
There is a risk to rise thoughts of suicide in a
person if you ask if he/she have thoughts about
suicide..
• 1% agreed completely
• 4% viewed on the whole
• 33% not sure it depends
• 26% agreed not completely
• 35 % agreed not at all
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44. Open questions
• What are for you most important in the sami
culture?
• In the older group two third of the youth
answered the Sami language and to save it/ the
reindeers and the ability to go on with reindeer
herding.
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45. Your future?
I want to change my life …………………
What worries you most about the future?
What do you think you are you doing in five year?
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46. • The Swedish state has not yet ratified ILO
Convention 169 regarding the rights of
indigenous peoples. The Government says it
wants to clarify all the consequences before
taking a decision. As a result, the Sami are still
waiting.
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