U.S.-Finland Cooperative Research: Comparison of National Versus Local Development Efforts in Small Towns in Finland and the U.S.

该奖项支持哈雷·约翰森博士和爱达荷大学的一名研究生与芬兰奥卢大学的Arvo Naukkarinen博士合作，对芬兰和美国的社区发展进行比较研究。他们研究的目的是更好地了解农村社区的商业增长过程，以及各种发展战略如何促进这一过程。芬兰和美国的农村社区发展有着相似的目标，但每个国家的发展都采用了截然不同的战略。这项合作研究将考察芬兰的区域规划政策的集中项目是如何刺激农村社区的经济发展的，以及这种外部援助和资金与美国小城镇主要的地方发展努力相比如何。研究将包括在芬兰收集数据，以复制1981年和1986年在美国对100个小城镇进行调查的全国样本进行的一项研究。农村地区的经济发展是当今大多数国家的一个重要目标。随着对发展问题的复杂性有了更深入的了解，外围地区的各种经济增长战略也随之演变。这项研究将深入了解动员和促进小城镇增长的过程如何运作，外部帮助如何在没有当地发展资源的欠发达地区创造增长，以及外部资金和援助是否能够为持续增长创造先决条件。

This award supports Dr. Harley Johansen and a graduate student from the University of Idaho to collaborate with Dr. Arvo Naukkarinen of Oulu University, Finland, in a comparative study of community development in Finland and the U.S. The objective of their research is to understand better the process of business growth in rural communities and how various development strategies can enhance this process. Rural community development in Finland and the United States has similar goals, but in each country development is pursued by significantly different strategies. This collaborative research will examine how Finland's centralized program of regional planning policy has worked to stimulate economic development of rural communities, and how this kind of external assistance and funding compares with the predominantly local development efforts found in American small towns. Research will involve data collection in Finland to replicate a study conducted in the U.S. among a national sample of 100 small towns that were surveyed in 1981 and 1986. Economic development in rural locations is an important goal among most countries today. A variety of strategies for economic growth in peripheral regions has evolved along with a greater understanding of the complexity of development problems. This research will provide insights into how the process of mobilization and promotion of growth in small towns works, how external help can create growth in less developed areas which do not have local resources for development, and whether external funding and assistance can create preconditions for sustained growth.