معرفی
Johanna Kaakinen is Professor of Psychology at the University of Turku's Department of Psychology and Speech-Language Pathology. She leads the Fostering Finnish Science Capital (FINSCI) consortium and serves as thematic area leader for 'Skills and learning' in the INVEST Research flagship. As coordinator of Turku EyeLabs and Editor-in-Chief of Discourse Processes, she maintains significant academic influence.
Her research focuses on cognitive processes in reading comprehension, science capital development, and emotional influences on information processing. Key areas include:
- Eye movement patterns during text comprehension
- Science engagement and capital formation
- Emotional responses to conflicting scientific information
- Literary immersion using neurocognitive methods
- Decision-making in science contexts
Recent publications (2023-2025) demonstrate strong focus on science communication, educational psychology, and cognitive aspects of health behavior. Research consistently employs eye-tracking methodologies while expanding into public science engagement and emotion studies.
Major scientific recognitions include:
- Tapio Nummenmaa dissertation award (2006)
- Turku University Foundation dissertation award (2005)
- Outstanding student paper award, Society for Text and Discourse (2000)
As primary supervisor, she has guided 34 Master's theses and 6 PhD students including Henri Olkoniemi and Suvi Holm. Currently leads two major grants:
- FINSCI consortium (€4.3M, 2020-2026)
- IMMERSED neurocognitive project (€480k, 2021-2024)
She coordinates Turku EyeLabs research ecosystem and collaborates internationally through visiting positions at INSEAD (France) and Freie Universität Berlin (Germany).
