According to the classical elite theory, the essential criterion for the existence of an elite is not the accumulation of power in the hands of a small group of people who take care of day-to-day decision-making but that this group constitutes a cohesive group. The coherence of the national elite structure can be assessed, for instance, by analyzing interlocking (mobility), joint interests, attitudinal unanimity and contacts (interaction networks) between members representing elites of politics, administration, business etc. The research task of my paper is to analyse changes in the coherence of the Finnish elite structure in the context of pivotal social changes in Finland 1991-2011. Theoretically the study was based on democratic elitism and the positional approach. Identical postal surveys were conducted to the elites of politics, administration, business, organisations, the mass media, science and culture in 1991 (N=1121, rate of response 66.9, 2001 (N=1285, 53.5 %) and 2011 (N=1409, 34.3 %),
Methodologically the study was based on network analysis. In order to study coherence within the individuals included in the elites were presented with a structured question: "The following is a list of instances and institutions with which you may have had contact in connection with your job, positions of trust, leisure pursuits, etc. Please state for each the 'frequency of your contacts' and the 'nature of your contacts'." The index of density was calculated on the basis of this question for all institutions which elite members interacted. The most important findings were that the interaction networks of the Finnish elites have dispersed since the early 1990s and the number of institutions with which they interacted very intensively has decreased.
