Paula Maarit Virtala

Paula Maarit Virtala is a University Researcher at the Department of Psychology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, and a key member of the Cognitive Brain Research Unit (CBRU). She serves as supervisor in multiple doctoral programs (Human Behavior; Cognition, Learning, Teaching and Communication; Brain & Mind) and acts as deputy director for Professor Teija Kujala's project within the Academy of Finland's Centre of Excellence for Music, Mind, Body and Brain Research (2022-2029).

Education:

• PhD in Psychology

Her research integrates cognitive neuroscience and developmental psychology to investigate infant neural mechanisms of speech processing, language acquisition, and dyslexia risk. Using event-related potentials (ERPs), she examines how auditory novelty detection and speech encoding evolve from birth through early childhood, with particular focus on identifying neural predictors of language outcomes and evaluating music-based interventions for at-risk populations including preterm infants.

Analysis of her 2024-2025 publications reveals consistent methodological approaches using ERP paradigms to track developmental trajectories of speech processing. Key thematic threads include the relationship between infant neural responses and later language/reading skills, minimal impact of dyslexia risk on early neural maturation, and the potential of music activities to enhance language development in vulnerable populations.

Virtala actively mentors doctoral candidates across multiple programs and secures competitive funding, including a €15,000 grant from Signe and Ane Gyllenbergs stiftelse (2024-2025) and participation in the Academy of Finland's Centre of Excellence (2022-2029). Her work demonstrates strong translational potential for early identification of language disorders and development of evidence-based interventions.

She contributes to the Cognitive Brain Research Unit and the Centre of Excellence for Music, Mind, Body and Brain Research, collaborating with multidisciplinary teams spanning neuroscience, psychology, and clinical medicine to advance understanding of music-cognition interactions across the lifespan.