Research Groups at Active Life Lab
The multidisciplinary team of Active Life Lab has extensive know-how and long-term experience in the wellbeing industry. This allows us to explore and innovate in order to tackle health and wellbeing challenges, from a variety of different approaches.
Our research groups are united by a passion to create novel ways to promote wellbeing. Building on the strengths, the teams are dedicated to produce new research-based solutions to promote public health, develop wellbeing services and evaluate their effectiveness.
Sustainable Solutions for Social & Health Care Services
Social & Health Care Services Team focuses on addressing the challenges of social and health care. We are committed to finding innovative solutions to complex issues in the field.
Our team consists of a multidisciplinary group of experts who combine their knowledge and experience to develop practical and effective solutions. Our work encompasses both projects that utilize practical approaches and research initiatives.
Areas of interest for us include the organization of health and social care, practices that promote health and wellbeing, and the advancement of assessment and fairness. We strive to understand both the structural and practical challenges of systems and to offer sustainable solutions for improvement.
We are also open to exploring other areas of interest related to health and wellbeing. Please, contact us if you have any topics you would like to develop or explore related to social or healthcare.
Let’s work together to build a better future for promoting health and wellbeing for all.
Our research and projects:
We strive to find innovative solutions for addressing the complex questions of the social and health care sector.
Marjo Pulliainen
Personalized Wellbeing Interventions
Promoting wellbeing, health services and interventions must be tailored to the specific time, place, and individual to achieve effectiveness and commitment to change, as well as to enhance relevance in everyday life. Change only occurs in specific moments and choices in daily life, and during these moments, people need timely support and guidance.
Often, health and well-being promotion focuses on the individual. However, our behavior is often influenced more by the environment we live in and the people around us than by our personal choices. Therefore, tailoring interventions to be suitable and motivating for the individual must also take into account environmental factors. Personalized does not only mean focusing on the individual but also considering the environmental context.
We research personalized wellbeing services, particularly for the prevention of type 2 diabetes. To ensure that these interventions are scalable, adaptable to various environments, and accessible regardless of time and place, it is sensible to leverage the opportunities provided by wellbeing technology and artificial intelligence.
Our goal is to develop more effective and accessible health promotion methods for people of different age groups and life stages, utilizing wearable technology and advanced data analytics. We place special emphasis on the potential of personalized healthcare, where behavior changes can be tailored to individual needs based on data and the surrounding environment.
Our group combines multidisciplinary expertise, high-quality experimental research designs, and participatory research with the aim of improving health behaviors and increasing wellbeing among various population groups. We work closely with international researchers and industry experts, striving to create significant impact in health promotion and disease prevention.
Our research and projects:
It is crucial to also leverage the opportunities provided by wellbeing technology and AI.
Arto Pesola
Nature-based Health Services
In a complex world and time, the ability to face wicked problems is an asset. The means to do so are often closer than you think. Nature as part of health and well-being services is one part of the solution.
Our team explores innovative health solutions by integrating nature into healthcare systems. We focus on planetary health aiming to enhance wellbeing through nature-based interventions. Our research supports sustainable effective practices that align human health with the natural environment and increases nature connectiveness.
Our work is based on research and we are constantly increasing our expertise by networking nationally and internationally. We refine ideas generated in teams and with partners by projecting them into development and research projects.
We are ready to listen to your individual needs and work with you to develop a solution.
Our team is made up of multidisciplinary experts, whose skills we support by encouraging continuous learning and training.
Our research and projects:
The goal is to promote wellbeing through nature-based methods.
Kati Kiiski
Planetary Brain Health
Are you curious about how our environment and lifestyle choices affect our mental physical wellbeing?
Our team delves into the intricate connections between natural environments, healthy lifestyles, and human health. Through cutting-edge research, we explore how interventions such as real nature exposures, wooden interiors, VR nature experiences, and healthy lifestyles can positively impact overall psychophysiological well-being.
Imagine a world where simple changes in your environment and lifestyle can enhance your mental state and physical health. Research has shown that reconnecting with nature does not only improve personal wellbeing but also promotes dedication to environmental protection. Our goal is to help both healthy and clinical patients in improving mental health through e.g. nature-based methods and thereby participate in creating a healthier planet for all.
Our team is focused in finding new ways to promote planetary wellbeing and brain health. Through our work, you get to know new findings and to discover new ways to make an impact. From time to time, we also look for participants to our innovative research. Together we can create a more sustainable, active and healthy future.
Our environment and lifestyle have an impact on our mental and physical wellbeing.
Susanne Kumpulainen
Our research and projects:
- Wooden Interiors Improve Heart Rate Variability-Derived Psychophysiological Well-Being: An Acute Cross-Over Study. Kumpulainen, S., Kilpiäinen, M., Koski, J., & Pesola, A. J. (2024). Environment and Behavior, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/00139165241270631
- Assessing the well-being benefits of VR nature experiences on group: Heart rate variability insights from a cross-over study. Kumpulainen, S., Esmaeilzadeh, S., & Pesola, A. J. (2024). Journal of Environmental Psychology, 97, 102366. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2024.102366.
- Enhancing Psychophysiological Well-Being through Nature-based Soundscapes: An Examination of Heart Rate Variability in a Cross-Over Study. Kumpulainen, S., Esmaeilzadeh, S., Pesonen, M., Brazao, C., & Pesola, A. J. (2024). PsyArXiv. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/zpfq3. Research cited at Big Think: Music as medicine: The therapeutic potential of sound.
- Acute Effects of Endurance Exercise on Brain Activity, Mood, and Well-Being: A MEG Study. Kumpulainen Susanne, Peltonen Jussi, Haapala Eero A., Seipäjärvi Santtu, Parviainen Tiina. Presented at Brain and Bodies in Social Interaction, Learning, and Wellbeing, 11-14 June 2024, Finland. Published in the book of abstracts.
- Is lifestyle counseling (exercise, sleep, and nutrition) effective in three months? Arto J. Pesola, Susanne Kumpulainen, Timo Hantunen, Haija Muhonen, Eetu Lietzén, Jani Vaheristo, Tuomas Reijonen, Paula Hämäläinen, Minna Männikkö, and Viljo Kuuluvainen (2019). Currently in Finnish (page 14): https://urn.fi/URN:ISBN:978-952-344-159-0.
Co-Design of Effective Wellbeing Services & Testbed Activities in Ecosystems
Co-design is participatory and multidisciplinary interaction between designers and different stakeholders of wellbeing services.
In practice this means participation of public, private and third sector as well as end users in research, testing, creative processes and decision-making over the different stages of solution development. Co-design can mean e.g. continuous collaboration, projects or workshops.
We combine designers’ know-how with different stakeholders’ collective wisdom and perceptions in order to solve mutual challenges. We believe that the key to creating user-centered, viable and effective wellbeing services is in connecting different viewpoints.
Based on our RDI know-how, we are building a versatile and internationalizing wellbeing ecosystem to South Savo region. The goal is to strengthen the viability and resilience of wellbeing businesses. Our emphasis is in creating product and service innovations as well as targeting local people and tourists with mutual sales and marketing efforts. We design ecosystem services that support organizations in the industry to succeed.
Active Life Lab is also a testbed for wellbeing innovations: we tailor contract research services to measure and validate ideas, usability, feasibility and effectiveness.
Our Hyviö application offers a practical tool for wellbeing sector organizations to collect data and evaluate the effectiveness of services.
Our research and projects:
Through co-design, our ecosystem and testbed services we respond to societal changes and challenges.
Katja Kiukas