Sami women’s lower NEET experience in an ethnoreligious multi-context perspective

The conclusions from the study suggests that sociocultural and macroeconomic factors must be highlighted and considered to ensure, evolve and enable Sami women’s further work participation. 

The presentation`s purpose is to explore and discuss how the factors of gender, class, and culture work together to form pathways from school to work among Sami women in Arctic Norway. The focus is to explore Sami women’s lower NEET (Not engaged in Education, Employment or Training) experience in an ethnoreligious multi-context perspective.

The presentation consists of data derived from a cross-sectional cohort and registry follow-up study in Northern Norway, 2003–2012, and data from Statistics Norway are included for an up-to date data analysis (2021).

The participants were adolescents and young people. Out of 5 877 junior high school pupils (15-16 years old) 83% answered a questionnaire in a cross-sectional study, the Norwegian Arctic Adolescent Health Study (NAAHS), whereas consent-based follow-up consisted of 68% (3987 young people). There is an ethnic self-report of 9.2% with Sami ethnicity in the respondent/consent group, hence 10% in NAAHS.  The outcome variables were educational aspirations, non-completion of upper secondar school, higher education completion, and NEET experience among female Sami young adults as explained by ethnoreligious affiliation. The explanatory variables are sociodemographic factors (gender, ethnicity, residency). Stratification of the participants are made by dividing girls and boys, Sami and non-Sami, Laestadian and non-Laestadian and residency by counties in Arctic Norway (previously Finnmark, Troms and Nordland).

The results show that Sami women stood positively out compared to majority women and all men through the footprint to work participation. Some of the conclusions from the study are that sociocultural and macroeconomic factors must be highlighted and considered to ensure and evolve for Sami women’s further work participation.

The access to higher education for Sami women in rural Norway has proved to be a great contributor to work and inclusion. An extensive engagement in Sami peoples’ legal rights among Sami women is empowering the gender in a sociocultural perspective. All these factors can contribute to improve public health among young Sami women, although the strain on the individual can be large.