Henrika Anttila - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Henrika Anttila

Research paper thumbnail of Primary and lower secondary students’ learning agency and social support

Frontline Learning Research

Making initiatives and having ownership over one’s learning is a key for applying and creating kn... more Making initiatives and having ownership over one’s learning is a key for applying and creating knowledge, acquiring new abilities, actively steering one’s life and the engaging in change in society. Understanding the preconditions for such learning should be in the core of designing learning environments and the primary interest of frontline learning research. This study focuses on exploring students’ sense of their learning agency in studying and the role of teacher and peer support in cultivating it. We examined how primary (grades 1-6) and lower secondary school students (grades 7-9) perceive their learning agency (LA), its relationship with the experienced teacher and peer support in studying. Also, differences between the girls and boys, and schools located in low and high SES neighborhoods was examined. We assessed the structure and level of learning agency by using a new measurement and explorative structural equation modeling (ESEM). Results show that learning agency consist...

Research paper thumbnail of Self-Regulated Video-Based Learning for Cultivating Surgical Skills: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative... more This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY

Research paper thumbnail of Personal interest, supervisory and research community support and dropout intentions among Finnish PhD candidates

Studies in graduate and postdoctoral education, Jun 2, 2023

Purpose-This study aims to advance the understanding on individual variations in PhD candidates' ... more Purpose-This study aims to advance the understanding on individual variations in PhD candidates' personal interest in their doctorate and supervisory and research community support, and several individual and structural attributes potentially having an impact on the profiles. Design/methodology/approach-The authors explored the interrelationship between personal interestsocial support profiles, and nationality, gender, research group and study status and the risk of dropping out. A total of 768 PhD candidates from a research-intensive university in Finland responded to a modified version of the cross-cultural doctoral experience survey. Latent profile analysis was used to explore the individual variations in PhD candidates' interest and support from the supervisor and research community. Findings-Three distinctive PhD interest-social support profiles were detected; the high interest-high support profile (74.4%, n = 570), the high interest-moderate support profile (18.2%, n = 140) and the moderate interest-moderate support profile (7.4%, n = 56). The profiles exhibited high to moderate levels of research, development and instrumental interest. Individuals in the high interest-moderate support and in the moderate interest-moderate support profiles were more prone to consider dropping out from their PhD than in the high interest-high support profile. Originality/value-The results indicate that by cultivating PhD candidates' interest and providing sufficient supervisory and the research community offers a means for preventing candidates from discontinuing their doctorate. Hence, building a supportive learning environment that cultivates a PhD candidate's personal interest is likely to reduce high dropout rates among the candidates.

Research paper thumbnail of Does It Feel the Same? Danish and Finnish Social Science and Humanities Doctoral Students’ Academic Emotions

Frontiers in Education, Dec 8, 2021

Even if pursuing a doctorate is both emotionally challenging and rewarding, empirical research fo... more Even if pursuing a doctorate is both emotionally challenging and rewarding, empirical research focusing on doctoral students' academic emotions is limited. Therefore, in this study we have contributed to bridging the gap in the research on the doctoral experience by mapping the emotional landscape of doctoral experience. In addition, we have shed light on potential invariants and socio-cultural characteristics of the emotional landscape by doing a crosscountry comparison between Danish and Finnish doctoral students. A total of 272 doctoral students (Danish: 145, Finnish: 127) from the field of humanities and social sciences responded to the Cross-cultural Doctoral Experience Survey. The data were both qualitatively and quantitatively analyzed, using a mixed methods approach. The results showed that the doctoral students experienced a wide range of both positive and negative emotions embedded in various activities of the doctoral experience, including supervision, scholarly community, doctoral research, development as a scholar and structures and resources. The results revealed some associations between the emotions that were experienced as well as differences between the countries.

Research paper thumbnail of The role of empathy between peers in upper secondary students’ study engagement and burnout

Frontiers in Psychology, Sep 30, 2022

Research paper thumbnail of The influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on PhD candidates’ study progress and study wellbeing

Higher education research and development, Apr 28, 2022

Research paper thumbnail of Is there a fit between PhD candidates’ and their supervisors’ perceptions on the impact of COVID-19 on doctoral education?

Studies in graduate and postdoctoral education, Nov 24, 2022

Purpose-The COVID-19 pandemic has had its impact on research and researchers, potentially influen... more Purpose-The COVID-19 pandemic has had its impact on research and researchers, potentially influencing the future of academia. Yet, to the best of the authors' knowledge, there are no empirical studies on the alignment between supervisors' and supervisees' estimates of the impact of COVID-19. This study aims to contribute to bridging this gap by exploring PhD candidates' and supervisors' perceptions of the impact of COVID-19 on candidates' study progress and study well-being, and whether the estimates were related to supervisors' and supervisees' well-being. Design/methodology/approach-A total of 768 PhD candidates and 561 doctoral supervisors from a large multifield research-intensive university in Finland participated in this quantitative study. Data were collected with the doctoral experience survey and the supervisory experience survey. Findings-In general, the results show that both supervisors and supervisees recognised the negative impact of the pandemic on candidates' well-being and progress, and their perceptions were quite well aligned. However, supervisors estimated that the impact had been more detrimental than the supervisees did. The results also show that the supervisors' perceptions of the negative impact of COVID-19 on candidates' progress and well-being were related to reduced levels of their own well-being. Originality/value-Results can be used in developing effective support means for both the supervisors and supervisees to overcome the hardships caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and to avoid long-term negative consequences for the candidates in degree completion, career trajectories and the future of the academy.

Research paper thumbnail of Relationship between doctoral supervisors’ competencies, engagement in supervisory development and experienced support from research community

Innovations in Education and Teaching International, Dec 23, 2022

Research paper thumbnail of Supervisors’ experiences of doctoral supervision in times of change

Studies in Graduate and Postdoctoral Education

Purpose Empirical evidence on how supervisors have perceived the changes and the implications of ... more Purpose Empirical evidence on how supervisors have perceived the changes and the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on their supervision is scarce. This paper aims to examine how the changing landscape of doctoral education has affected supervision from the supervisors’ perspective. Design/methodology/approach This survey addressed change, challenges and impact in supervisory responsibilities due to COVID-19 pandemic. The survey was completed by 561 doctoral supervisors from a large multi-field research-intensive university in Finland. Findings Results show that supervisors estimated that their supervision had been negatively affected by the pandemic, but to a lesser extent than their doctoral candidates’ progress and well-being. In the changed landscape of supervision, the supervisors grappled with challenges related to recognising doctoral candidates’ need of help. Supervisors’ experiences of the challenges and the impact of changed circumstances varied depending on the field a...

Research paper thumbnail of Doctoral supervisors’ and supervisees’ perceptions on supervisory support and frequency of supervision – Do they match?

Innovations in Education and Teaching International

Research paper thumbnail of Self-Regulated Video-Based Learning for Cultivating Surgical Skills: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

International Medical Education

In recent decades, there has been a shift towards competency-based approaches in surgical trainin... more In recent decades, there has been a shift towards competency-based approaches in surgical training. The effectiveness of video-based learning (VBL) in enhancing surgical skills, particularly in the context of self-regulated learning (SR-VBL), was assessed in this study. While VBL is cost-effective, flexible, and can improve proficiency in technical skills prior to clinical practice, it is resource-challenging. SR-VBL includes many of VBL’s benefits but has utility in individual and distance settings due to its autarkic nature. This study identified and analyzed contemporary literature on SR-VBL using PRISMA guidelines, focusing on original randomized controlled studies published in international peer-reviewed journals during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020–2022. Seven studies with 462 participants were included, with three eligible for the meta-analysis. The results showed that self-regulated video-based learning contributes to the learning of technical skills and can be applied to le...

Research paper thumbnail of Personal interest, supervisory and research community support and dropout intentions among Finnish PhD candidates

Studies in Graduate and Postdoctoral Education

Purpose This study aims to advance the understanding on individual variations in PhD candidates’ ... more Purpose This study aims to advance the understanding on individual variations in PhD candidates’ personal interest in their doctorate and supervisory and research community support, and several individual and structural attributes potentially having an impact on the profiles. Design/methodology/approach The authors explored the interrelationship between personal interest – social support profiles, and nationality, gender, research group and study status and the risk of dropping out. A total of 768 PhD candidates from a research-intensive university in Finland responded to a modified version of the cross-cultural doctoral experience survey. Latent profile analysis was used to explore the individual variations in PhD candidates’ interest and support from the supervisor and research community. Findings Three distinctive PhD interest-social support profiles were detected; the high interest–high support profile (74.4%, n = 570), the high interest–moderate support profile (18.2%, n = 140)...

Research paper thumbnail of Comparison of voluntary and forced digital leaps in higher education – Teachers’ experiences of the added value of using digital tools in teaching and learning

Education and Information Technologies

The study examines the benefits of digital tools in teaching and learning as experienced by unive... more The study examines the benefits of digital tools in teaching and learning as experienced by university teachers in two different time periods: 1) during the controlled digital leap before the Covid-19 pandemic (2017–2019) and 2) during the emergency imposition of remote teaching in response to the lockdown aimed at containing the Covid-19 pandemic (2020). Teachers in different academic fields at a large multidisciplinary Finnish university (N1 = 303 and N2 = 265) responded to two open-ended questions as part of a broader questionnaire. The research identified four kinds of benefits related to digital teaching: (1) practical and administrative and (2) independence of time and place, implying practical and technical benefits; as well as (3) enhancing learning and (4) developing teaching, which are primarily pedagogical benefits, related to teaching and learning. Voluntary and forced digital leaps provided different kinds of consequences in teaching and learning. Digital tools generall...

Research paper thumbnail of Is there a fit between PhD candidates’ and their supervisors’ perceptions on the impact of COVID-19 on doctoral education?

Studies in Graduate and Postdoctoral Education

Purpose The COVID-19 pandemic has had its impact on research and researchers, potentially influen... more Purpose The COVID-19 pandemic has had its impact on research and researchers, potentially influencing the future of academia. Yet, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, there are no empirical studies on the alignment between supervisors’ and supervisees’ estimates of the impact of COVID-19. This study aims to contribute to bridging this gap by exploring PhD candidates’ and supervisors’ perceptions of the impact of COVID-19 on candidates’ study progress and study well-being, and whether the estimates were related to supervisors’ and supervisees’ well-being. Design/methodology/approach A total of 768 PhD candidates and 561 doctoral supervisors from a large multifield research-intensive university in Finland participated in this quantitative study. Data were collected with the doctoral experience survey and the supervisory experience survey. Findings In general, the results show that both supervisors and supervisees recognised the negative impact of the pandemic on candidates’ well-be...

Research paper thumbnail of The role of empathy between peers in upper secondary students’ study engagement and burnout

Frontiers in Psychology

Having the ability to understand emotionally how other people feel and see things is an essential... more Having the ability to understand emotionally how other people feel and see things is an essential fabric for building and sustaining functional interpersonal relationships. Without such an ability, social interaction crumbles, engagement fails, and learning is eroded. Yet, empirical evidence on the relationship between study burnout and study engagement, and empathy between upper secondary school students is limited. We are tackling the challenge by exploring the association between empathy between peers and study engagement and study burnout among upper secondary school students. Two hundred and eighty upper secondary education students took part in our cross-sectional study. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the association between empathy (i.e., cognitive and affective empathy), and study burnout and study engagement. The results showed that cognitive empathy contributed to affective empathy, which was further related to increased levels of study engagement, and de...

Research paper thumbnail of The emotional landscape of curriculum making

Research paper thumbnail of Engaged and/or burnt out? Finnish and South African doctoral students’ experiences

Studies in Graduate and Postdoctoral Education

Purpose Doctoral students’ ill-being in terms of stress, exhaustion and high levels of mental hea... more Purpose Doctoral students’ ill-being in terms of stress, exhaustion and high levels of mental health problems has been well documented. Yet, the well-being of doctoral students is more than the absence of these negative symptoms. The number of studies exploring the combination of positive and negative attributes of doctoral students’ well-being is limited. Therefore, this study aims to focus on exploring individual variation in doctoral students’ experienced engagement and burnout across two distinct socio-cultural contexts in Finland and in South Africa. Design/methodology/approach A total of 884 doctoral students from Finland (n = 391) and South Africa (n = 493) responded to the cross-cultural Doctoral Experience Survey. The data were quantitatively analyzed. Findings Altogether four distinctive engagement–burnout profiles were detected, including engaged, engaged–exhausted, moderately engaged–burnout and burnout profiles. Differences between the Finnish and South African students...

Research paper thumbnail of The influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on PhD candidates’ study progress and study wellbeing

Higher Education Research & Development

Research paper thumbnail of COVID-19 Accelerating Academic Teachers’ Digital Competence in Distance Teaching

Frontiers in Education, 2022

This study examines, using a cross-sectional approach, the digital competence of academic teacher... more This study examines, using a cross-sectional approach, the digital competence of academic teachers at a time when teaching shifted to digital distance learning at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Teachers from different academic fields at a large multidisciplinary Finnish university (N = 265) responded to a questionnaire about the purposes for which they use digital tools in teaching, how they evaluated their competence at distance teaching during the lockdown of March-May 2020 and their beliefs about distance teaching. The respondents used digital tools in teaching mostly for delivering information. According to their evaluations, their competence in distance teaching increased during the early stages of COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, but their beliefs about distance teaching did not relate to the feelings of competence. Respondents with no experience in distance teaching before the lockdown evaluated their competence as having increased more than did respondents with previous exper...

Research paper thumbnail of Does It Feel the Same? Danish and Finnish Social Science and Humanities Doctoral Students’ Academic Emotions

Frontiers in Education, 2021

Even if pursuing a doctorate is both emotionally challenging and rewarding, empirical research fo... more Even if pursuing a doctorate is both emotionally challenging and rewarding, empirical research focusing on doctoral students’ academic emotions is limited. Therefore, in this study we have contributed to bridging the gap in the research on the doctoral experience by mapping the emotional landscape of doctoral experience. In addition, we have shed light on potential invariants and socio-cultural characteristics of the emotional landscape by doing a cross-country comparison between Danish and Finnish doctoral students. A total of 272 doctoral students (Danish: 145, Finnish: 127) from the field of humanities and social sciences responded to the Cross-cultural Doctoral Experience Survey. The data were both qualitatively and quantitatively analyzed, using a mixed methods approach. The results showed that the doctoral students experienced a wide range of both positive and negative emotions embedded in various activities of the doctoral experience, including supervision, scholarly communit...

Research paper thumbnail of Primary and lower secondary students’ learning agency and social support

Frontline Learning Research

Making initiatives and having ownership over one’s learning is a key for applying and creating kn... more Making initiatives and having ownership over one’s learning is a key for applying and creating knowledge, acquiring new abilities, actively steering one’s life and the engaging in change in society. Understanding the preconditions for such learning should be in the core of designing learning environments and the primary interest of frontline learning research. This study focuses on exploring students’ sense of their learning agency in studying and the role of teacher and peer support in cultivating it. We examined how primary (grades 1-6) and lower secondary school students (grades 7-9) perceive their learning agency (LA), its relationship with the experienced teacher and peer support in studying. Also, differences between the girls and boys, and schools located in low and high SES neighborhoods was examined. We assessed the structure and level of learning agency by using a new measurement and explorative structural equation modeling (ESEM). Results show that learning agency consist...

Research paper thumbnail of Self-Regulated Video-Based Learning for Cultivating Surgical Skills: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative... more This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY

Research paper thumbnail of Personal interest, supervisory and research community support and dropout intentions among Finnish PhD candidates

Studies in graduate and postdoctoral education, Jun 2, 2023

Purpose-This study aims to advance the understanding on individual variations in PhD candidates' ... more Purpose-This study aims to advance the understanding on individual variations in PhD candidates' personal interest in their doctorate and supervisory and research community support, and several individual and structural attributes potentially having an impact on the profiles. Design/methodology/approach-The authors explored the interrelationship between personal interestsocial support profiles, and nationality, gender, research group and study status and the risk of dropping out. A total of 768 PhD candidates from a research-intensive university in Finland responded to a modified version of the cross-cultural doctoral experience survey. Latent profile analysis was used to explore the individual variations in PhD candidates' interest and support from the supervisor and research community. Findings-Three distinctive PhD interest-social support profiles were detected; the high interest-high support profile (74.4%, n = 570), the high interest-moderate support profile (18.2%, n = 140) and the moderate interest-moderate support profile (7.4%, n = 56). The profiles exhibited high to moderate levels of research, development and instrumental interest. Individuals in the high interest-moderate support and in the moderate interest-moderate support profiles were more prone to consider dropping out from their PhD than in the high interest-high support profile. Originality/value-The results indicate that by cultivating PhD candidates' interest and providing sufficient supervisory and the research community offers a means for preventing candidates from discontinuing their doctorate. Hence, building a supportive learning environment that cultivates a PhD candidate's personal interest is likely to reduce high dropout rates among the candidates.

Research paper thumbnail of Does It Feel the Same? Danish and Finnish Social Science and Humanities Doctoral Students’ Academic Emotions

Frontiers in Education, Dec 8, 2021

Even if pursuing a doctorate is both emotionally challenging and rewarding, empirical research fo... more Even if pursuing a doctorate is both emotionally challenging and rewarding, empirical research focusing on doctoral students' academic emotions is limited. Therefore, in this study we have contributed to bridging the gap in the research on the doctoral experience by mapping the emotional landscape of doctoral experience. In addition, we have shed light on potential invariants and socio-cultural characteristics of the emotional landscape by doing a crosscountry comparison between Danish and Finnish doctoral students. A total of 272 doctoral students (Danish: 145, Finnish: 127) from the field of humanities and social sciences responded to the Cross-cultural Doctoral Experience Survey. The data were both qualitatively and quantitatively analyzed, using a mixed methods approach. The results showed that the doctoral students experienced a wide range of both positive and negative emotions embedded in various activities of the doctoral experience, including supervision, scholarly community, doctoral research, development as a scholar and structures and resources. The results revealed some associations between the emotions that were experienced as well as differences between the countries.

Research paper thumbnail of The role of empathy between peers in upper secondary students’ study engagement and burnout

Frontiers in Psychology, Sep 30, 2022

Research paper thumbnail of The influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on PhD candidates’ study progress and study wellbeing

Higher education research and development, Apr 28, 2022

Research paper thumbnail of Is there a fit between PhD candidates’ and their supervisors’ perceptions on the impact of COVID-19 on doctoral education?

Studies in graduate and postdoctoral education, Nov 24, 2022

Purpose-The COVID-19 pandemic has had its impact on research and researchers, potentially influen... more Purpose-The COVID-19 pandemic has had its impact on research and researchers, potentially influencing the future of academia. Yet, to the best of the authors' knowledge, there are no empirical studies on the alignment between supervisors' and supervisees' estimates of the impact of COVID-19. This study aims to contribute to bridging this gap by exploring PhD candidates' and supervisors' perceptions of the impact of COVID-19 on candidates' study progress and study well-being, and whether the estimates were related to supervisors' and supervisees' well-being. Design/methodology/approach-A total of 768 PhD candidates and 561 doctoral supervisors from a large multifield research-intensive university in Finland participated in this quantitative study. Data were collected with the doctoral experience survey and the supervisory experience survey. Findings-In general, the results show that both supervisors and supervisees recognised the negative impact of the pandemic on candidates' well-being and progress, and their perceptions were quite well aligned. However, supervisors estimated that the impact had been more detrimental than the supervisees did. The results also show that the supervisors' perceptions of the negative impact of COVID-19 on candidates' progress and well-being were related to reduced levels of their own well-being. Originality/value-Results can be used in developing effective support means for both the supervisors and supervisees to overcome the hardships caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and to avoid long-term negative consequences for the candidates in degree completion, career trajectories and the future of the academy.

Research paper thumbnail of Relationship between doctoral supervisors’ competencies, engagement in supervisory development and experienced support from research community

Innovations in Education and Teaching International, Dec 23, 2022

Research paper thumbnail of Supervisors’ experiences of doctoral supervision in times of change

Studies in Graduate and Postdoctoral Education

Purpose Empirical evidence on how supervisors have perceived the changes and the implications of ... more Purpose Empirical evidence on how supervisors have perceived the changes and the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on their supervision is scarce. This paper aims to examine how the changing landscape of doctoral education has affected supervision from the supervisors’ perspective. Design/methodology/approach This survey addressed change, challenges and impact in supervisory responsibilities due to COVID-19 pandemic. The survey was completed by 561 doctoral supervisors from a large multi-field research-intensive university in Finland. Findings Results show that supervisors estimated that their supervision had been negatively affected by the pandemic, but to a lesser extent than their doctoral candidates’ progress and well-being. In the changed landscape of supervision, the supervisors grappled with challenges related to recognising doctoral candidates’ need of help. Supervisors’ experiences of the challenges and the impact of changed circumstances varied depending on the field a...

Research paper thumbnail of Doctoral supervisors’ and supervisees’ perceptions on supervisory support and frequency of supervision – Do they match?

Innovations in Education and Teaching International

Research paper thumbnail of Self-Regulated Video-Based Learning for Cultivating Surgical Skills: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

International Medical Education

In recent decades, there has been a shift towards competency-based approaches in surgical trainin... more In recent decades, there has been a shift towards competency-based approaches in surgical training. The effectiveness of video-based learning (VBL) in enhancing surgical skills, particularly in the context of self-regulated learning (SR-VBL), was assessed in this study. While VBL is cost-effective, flexible, and can improve proficiency in technical skills prior to clinical practice, it is resource-challenging. SR-VBL includes many of VBL’s benefits but has utility in individual and distance settings due to its autarkic nature. This study identified and analyzed contemporary literature on SR-VBL using PRISMA guidelines, focusing on original randomized controlled studies published in international peer-reviewed journals during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020–2022. Seven studies with 462 participants were included, with three eligible for the meta-analysis. The results showed that self-regulated video-based learning contributes to the learning of technical skills and can be applied to le...

Research paper thumbnail of Personal interest, supervisory and research community support and dropout intentions among Finnish PhD candidates

Studies in Graduate and Postdoctoral Education

Purpose This study aims to advance the understanding on individual variations in PhD candidates’ ... more Purpose This study aims to advance the understanding on individual variations in PhD candidates’ personal interest in their doctorate and supervisory and research community support, and several individual and structural attributes potentially having an impact on the profiles. Design/methodology/approach The authors explored the interrelationship between personal interest – social support profiles, and nationality, gender, research group and study status and the risk of dropping out. A total of 768 PhD candidates from a research-intensive university in Finland responded to a modified version of the cross-cultural doctoral experience survey. Latent profile analysis was used to explore the individual variations in PhD candidates’ interest and support from the supervisor and research community. Findings Three distinctive PhD interest-social support profiles were detected; the high interest–high support profile (74.4%, n = 570), the high interest–moderate support profile (18.2%, n = 140)...

Research paper thumbnail of Comparison of voluntary and forced digital leaps in higher education – Teachers’ experiences of the added value of using digital tools in teaching and learning

Education and Information Technologies

The study examines the benefits of digital tools in teaching and learning as experienced by unive... more The study examines the benefits of digital tools in teaching and learning as experienced by university teachers in two different time periods: 1) during the controlled digital leap before the Covid-19 pandemic (2017–2019) and 2) during the emergency imposition of remote teaching in response to the lockdown aimed at containing the Covid-19 pandemic (2020). Teachers in different academic fields at a large multidisciplinary Finnish university (N1 = 303 and N2 = 265) responded to two open-ended questions as part of a broader questionnaire. The research identified four kinds of benefits related to digital teaching: (1) practical and administrative and (2) independence of time and place, implying practical and technical benefits; as well as (3) enhancing learning and (4) developing teaching, which are primarily pedagogical benefits, related to teaching and learning. Voluntary and forced digital leaps provided different kinds of consequences in teaching and learning. Digital tools generall...

Research paper thumbnail of Is there a fit between PhD candidates’ and their supervisors’ perceptions on the impact of COVID-19 on doctoral education?

Studies in Graduate and Postdoctoral Education

Purpose The COVID-19 pandemic has had its impact on research and researchers, potentially influen... more Purpose The COVID-19 pandemic has had its impact on research and researchers, potentially influencing the future of academia. Yet, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, there are no empirical studies on the alignment between supervisors’ and supervisees’ estimates of the impact of COVID-19. This study aims to contribute to bridging this gap by exploring PhD candidates’ and supervisors’ perceptions of the impact of COVID-19 on candidates’ study progress and study well-being, and whether the estimates were related to supervisors’ and supervisees’ well-being. Design/methodology/approach A total of 768 PhD candidates and 561 doctoral supervisors from a large multifield research-intensive university in Finland participated in this quantitative study. Data were collected with the doctoral experience survey and the supervisory experience survey. Findings In general, the results show that both supervisors and supervisees recognised the negative impact of the pandemic on candidates’ well-be...

Research paper thumbnail of The role of empathy between peers in upper secondary students’ study engagement and burnout

Frontiers in Psychology

Having the ability to understand emotionally how other people feel and see things is an essential... more Having the ability to understand emotionally how other people feel and see things is an essential fabric for building and sustaining functional interpersonal relationships. Without such an ability, social interaction crumbles, engagement fails, and learning is eroded. Yet, empirical evidence on the relationship between study burnout and study engagement, and empathy between upper secondary school students is limited. We are tackling the challenge by exploring the association between empathy between peers and study engagement and study burnout among upper secondary school students. Two hundred and eighty upper secondary education students took part in our cross-sectional study. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the association between empathy (i.e., cognitive and affective empathy), and study burnout and study engagement. The results showed that cognitive empathy contributed to affective empathy, which was further related to increased levels of study engagement, and de...

Research paper thumbnail of The emotional landscape of curriculum making

Research paper thumbnail of Engaged and/or burnt out? Finnish and South African doctoral students’ experiences

Studies in Graduate and Postdoctoral Education

Purpose Doctoral students’ ill-being in terms of stress, exhaustion and high levels of mental hea... more Purpose Doctoral students’ ill-being in terms of stress, exhaustion and high levels of mental health problems has been well documented. Yet, the well-being of doctoral students is more than the absence of these negative symptoms. The number of studies exploring the combination of positive and negative attributes of doctoral students’ well-being is limited. Therefore, this study aims to focus on exploring individual variation in doctoral students’ experienced engagement and burnout across two distinct socio-cultural contexts in Finland and in South Africa. Design/methodology/approach A total of 884 doctoral students from Finland (n = 391) and South Africa (n = 493) responded to the cross-cultural Doctoral Experience Survey. The data were quantitatively analyzed. Findings Altogether four distinctive engagement–burnout profiles were detected, including engaged, engaged–exhausted, moderately engaged–burnout and burnout profiles. Differences between the Finnish and South African students...

Research paper thumbnail of The influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on PhD candidates’ study progress and study wellbeing

Higher Education Research & Development

Research paper thumbnail of COVID-19 Accelerating Academic Teachers’ Digital Competence in Distance Teaching

Frontiers in Education, 2022

This study examines, using a cross-sectional approach, the digital competence of academic teacher... more This study examines, using a cross-sectional approach, the digital competence of academic teachers at a time when teaching shifted to digital distance learning at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Teachers from different academic fields at a large multidisciplinary Finnish university (N = 265) responded to a questionnaire about the purposes for which they use digital tools in teaching, how they evaluated their competence at distance teaching during the lockdown of March-May 2020 and their beliefs about distance teaching. The respondents used digital tools in teaching mostly for delivering information. According to their evaluations, their competence in distance teaching increased during the early stages of COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, but their beliefs about distance teaching did not relate to the feelings of competence. Respondents with no experience in distance teaching before the lockdown evaluated their competence as having increased more than did respondents with previous exper...

Research paper thumbnail of Does It Feel the Same? Danish and Finnish Social Science and Humanities Doctoral Students’ Academic Emotions

Frontiers in Education, 2021

Even if pursuing a doctorate is both emotionally challenging and rewarding, empirical research fo... more Even if pursuing a doctorate is both emotionally challenging and rewarding, empirical research focusing on doctoral students’ academic emotions is limited. Therefore, in this study we have contributed to bridging the gap in the research on the doctoral experience by mapping the emotional landscape of doctoral experience. In addition, we have shed light on potential invariants and socio-cultural characteristics of the emotional landscape by doing a cross-country comparison between Danish and Finnish doctoral students. A total of 272 doctoral students (Danish: 145, Finnish: 127) from the field of humanities and social sciences responded to the Cross-cultural Doctoral Experience Survey. The data were both qualitatively and quantitatively analyzed, using a mixed methods approach. The results showed that the doctoral students experienced a wide range of both positive and negative emotions embedded in various activities of the doctoral experience, including supervision, scholarly communit...