معرفی
Sarah Åkerman is a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Faculty of Education and Welfare Studies at Åbo Akademi University, specializing in Social Policy. Her research centers on informal care among older adults and the evolution of formal eldercare systems, utilizing mixed-methods approaches to address critical challenges in aging societies.
Her research interests span gerontology, social policy, and public health, with a focus on caregiver experiences, peer support interventions, and longevity studies. She investigates risk factors for loneliness among informal caregivers and the socioecological determinants of support service utilization in Finland and Sweden, emphasizing practical applications for Nordic welfare models.
Recent publications (2025) analyze informal caregiving through longitudinal studies and theoretical frameworks like the Andersen Behavioral Model, revealing key insights for policy and practice in Nordic eldercare systems, particularly regarding caregiver well-being and service accessibility.
Scientific Awards: No awards or fellowships were documented in the available information.
As Principal Investigator, Åkerman leads projects including ‘Hållbar omsorg bland äldre i Svenskfinland’ (2022-2024) and ‘Blå Zoner i Norden’ (2025), funded by Svensk-Österbottniska samfundet and NTM-centralen i Österbotten. She previously coordinated the Expert Caregiver project evaluation (2018-2021), a collaboration with Novia University of Applied Sciences and Folkhälsan that trained former caregivers as peer supporters.
She actively contributes to the Gerontological Regional Database (GERDA) research team and engages in interdisciplinary collaborations examining social welfare delivery, with 55 documented academic activities and 15 media appearances highlighting caregiver vulnerabilities in Finnish society.
