Landsbygdsboende i inflyttarnas perspektiv. Intention och handling i lokalsamhället

Sammanfattning: This study deals with counterurbanisation in Sweden. 'Action in context' is an important concept; the background, characteristics and intentions of the newcomers, and the physical and social milieu in which they settle, constitute the context of their actions in a new environment.Most of the empirical data comes from household interviews carried out in four rural parishes in East Central Sweden. The reasons for moving to the countryside were analysed in terms of the values and previous experiences of the migrants. The concepts of 'freedom', 'peace and quiet', 'sense of community' and 'independence' were found to be important. So were previous contacts with relatives in the countryside, and ownership of a second home that could be uppgraded to a permanent place of living. The reasons for moving to the countryside, and to a specific place there, had more to do with individualistic aspects related to 'what is good for the household' than with expectations of group or community affiliations in the new environment, although in some cases the latter also were significant.A major part of the study analyses the 'practices', the everyday actions, of the newcomers in three arenas: 'the community', 'nature' and 'the house'. These practices can be understood in terms of the varying intentions and living conditions of households. A major distinction is made between 'inwardly- directed' practices (household, home) and 'outwardly-directed' (community, nature). These different practices should be taken into account in the planning of the countryside, since peoples' intentions and actions ought to be carefully considered in the planning process. Also, since different types of housing - cottages, bungalows, terrace houses and flats - provide desirable and attainable homes for households with different resources and intentions, the composition of the housing stock has a major impact on the composition of the population in the countryside.