Aki
Koivula
Links
Areas of expertise
Biography
I am a docent in Economic Sociology at the University of Turku and a docent in Political Science at Tampere University.
I currently work as a Senior Researcher at the INVEST Flagship, where I lead a research group focused on planning and implementing the INVEST Longitudinal Survey on Well-Being. I am also the Principal Investigator of the project “Segregating Trust and Sleeping Suburbs: Intra-Urban Inequalities in Political Efficacy and Electoral Participation.” From 2020 to 2024, I led the KRIME research group, which examined the social impacts of the pandemic. Before joining INVEST, I held several teaching positions and also served as Head of the Economic Sociology Unit for two years.
Teaching
My current teaching profile centers on PhD supervision and the development of research proposals. I am responsible for INWS0018 Research Proposal Workshop. I supervise nine PhD researchers whose topics range from political attitudes to subjective well-being.
Research
My research focuses on citizens' well-being and their engagement with state institutions within the context of societal change. In particular, I have studied the drivers and consequences of political trust, as well as the impact of digital technology on human behaviour and interaction. I have published extensively in leading academic journals, such as European Political Science Review, Sociology, Social Science & Medicine, and New Media & Society.