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Biography
I started as a Professor at University of Turku in August 2020. I received my PhD in Psychology at Åbo Akademi University in 2006. After a postdoc period at University of Maryland in the USA, I worked at University of Helsinki (Collegium for Advanced Studies and Institute of Behavioural Sciences) for several years. In 2014, I returned to Åbo Akademi and worked as an Academy of Finland Academy Research Fellow (akatemiatutkija) from 2015 onward. In 2018, I moved to Norway to work as an Associate Professor and later Professor at the Center for Multilingualism in Society across the Lifespan (Centre of Excellence 2013-2023 of Research Council of Norway) at University of Oslo. In addition to the professorship at University of Turku, I currently act as Professor II for University of Oslo.
Teaching
I teach psycholinguistics and bilingualism and am currently in charge of bachelor’s and master’s thesis seminars. I also supervise BA, MA, and PhD students.
Research
My research focuses on the neurocognitive basis of processing and learning of language, with an emphasis on bilingualism/multilingualism. I am interested in possible neurocognitive and linguistic consequences of bilingualism as well as the relationship between executive functions and language. One central topic has also been research on how morphologically complex words are processed in different languages and populations. In these areas, we are utilizing a range of brain imaging and behavioural experimental techniques, as well as surveys and meta-analytic methods. We are also developing and using digital tools such as mobile applications and games to study the learning of Finnish and other Nordic languages. In these projects, our study participants include, for example, bilingual and multilingual adults and children, learners of Finnish, and persons with aphasia.