Atte Oksanen

I am Professor of Social Psychology and Vice Dean for Research at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Tampere University. I lead the Emerging Technologies Lab, a research center, which studies how artificial intelligence, social media, online communities and other emerging technologies shape human behaviour, social interaction, working life and well-being.

My current research focuses on artificial intelligence in society and working life, digital social interaction, online harms, addictions and technology-related well-being. I lead multidisciplinary and international research projects and collaborate with researchers, organisations and policymakers in Finland and internationally.

My research combines perspectives from social psychology, sociology, criminology and technology studies. I have authored or co-authored more than 230 peer-reviewed journal articles. My work has appeared in journals including Criminology, Addiction, Social Science & Medicine, Computers in Human Behavior, New Media & Society, International Journal of Information Management, and Higher Education.

Vice Dean for Research, Faculty of Social Sciences
Responsible for research development, research strategy and research-related administration at the faculty.

Director, Emerging Technologies Lab
Responsible for the scientific leadership, development and supervision of a multidisciplinary research community studying artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies.

Professor of Social Psychology
Research, research leadership, doctoral supervision, and master’s- and doctoral-level teaching in social psychology.

My expertise covers the social and psychological effects of artificial intelligence, social media and emerging technologies. I study how digital environments influence behaviour, interaction, identity, well-being, working life and social relationships.

My areas of expertise include artificial intelligence in society, digital interaction, online communities, online hate and harassment, digital stress, technology-related well-being, gambling and other addictions, and crime and deviance. I have extensive experience in longitudinal, cross-national and multidisciplinary research.

Professor of Social Psychology specialising in artificial intelligence and society, emerging technologies, social media, online communities, digital well-being, online harms, addictions and working life.

Established and leads the Emerging Technologies Lab, a multidisciplinary research center studying the societal and psychological effects of emerging technologies.

Built and leads Emerging Technologies Lab's internationally distinctive data infrastructure, including globally unique longitudinal survey datasets on emerging technologies, AI, working life, digital behaviour and well-being.

Led several major national and international research projects funded by Finnish and international research organisations.

Published more than 230 peer-reviewed international journal articles across social psychology, criminology, sociology, health sciences and technology studies.

Seminar monographs including Online Hate and Harmful Content: Cross-National Perspectives (Routledge) and AI Disruption at Work: Employee Identity, Emotion, and Adaptation (Palgrave Macmillan).

Served in major national research-policy and research-funding positions, including positions in the Research Council of Finland (2022–2025).

Current

2020– A-Clinic Foundation, member of board 

2019– Member assessment group for gambling harms and risks, Ministry of Social Affairs and Health 

Previous

2022–2025 Board member, Finnish Research Infrastructures Committee, Academy of Finland 

2022–2024 Board member, Research Council for Culture and Society, Academy of Finland

My research aims to analyze how artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies transform human behaviour, social interaction, working life and well-being. I examine both the opportunities and risks of technological change, including new forms of interaction, digital stress, online harms, addictive behaviour and social inequality. A central goal of my work is to produce rigorous and societally relevant knowledge that supports responsible technology development, evidence-based decision-making and healthier digital environments.

Artificial intelligence and society
Emerging technologies
Digital interaction and online communities
Social media
Digital well-being
Online harms, hate and harassment
Addictions and gambling
Working life
Crime and deviance

Social psychology
Sociology
Criminology
Psychology
Technology studies
Social sciences
Health sciences
Cultural studies

Current positions

2024– Vice Dean for Research, Faculty of Social Sciences, Tampere University, Finland
2018– Professor of Social Psychology, Tampere University, Finland

Previous positions

2014–2018 Professor of Social Psychology, tenure track, University of Tampere, Finland
2013–2016 Principal Investigator, Hate Communities: A Cross-National Comparison, University of Turku, Finland
2013–2014 Senior Researcher, National Research Institute of Legal Policy, Ministry of Justice, Finland
2012–2013 Senior Researcher, Finnish Youth Research Network, Finland
2009–2012 Principal Investigator, Everyday Life and Insecurity, University of Turku, Finland
2009–2011 Principal Investigator and Postdoctoral Researcher, Images of Addiction in Rock Culture, University of Tampere, Finland
2007–2008 Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of Tampere, Finland
2002–2006 Research Fellow, University of Tampere, Finland

Education and academic qualifications

2011 Title of Docent in Sociology, University of Helsinki, Finland
2011 Title of Docent in Sociology, University of Turku, Finland
2008 Title of Docent in Social Psychology, University of Tampere, Finland
2006 Doctor of Social Sciences in Social Psychology, University of Tampere, Finland
2004 Licentiate of Social Sciences in Social Psychology, University of Tampere, Finland
2004 Master of Arts in Finnish Literature, University of Tampere, Finland
2001 Master of Social Sciences in Social Psychology, University of Tampere, Finland

1. Oksanen, A. & Savolainen, I. (2026, forthcoming). AI Disruption at Work: Employee Identity, Emotion, and Adaptation. Palgrave Macmillan.

2. Heiskari, M., Celuch, M., Koivula, A., Savolainen, I., & Oksanen, A. (2025). Technological identity and basic psychological needs in the use of new technologies: A two-wave cross-national survey study. International Journal of Information Management, 84, 102926  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2025.102926

3. Oksanen, A. & Lahtinen, J. (2025). AI-Generated Art Perception: A Population Study. Leonardo, https://doi.org/10.1162/LEON.a.2664.

4. Oksanen, A., Celuch, M., Oksa, R., & Savolainen, I. (2024). Online Communities Come with Real-world Consequences for Individuals and Societies. Communications Psychology, 2, 71, https://doi.org/10.1038/s44271-024-00112-6.

5. Oksanen, A., Celuch, M., Latikka, R., Oksa, R., & Savela, N. (2022). Hate and harassment in academia: The rising concern of the online environment. Higher Education, 84, 541–567, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-021-00787-4 

6. Latikka, R., Turja, T., & Oksanen, A. (2019) Self-Efficacy and Acceptance of Robots. Computers in Human Behavior, 93, 157–163. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2018.12.017 

7. Keipi, T., Näsi, M., Oksanen, A., & Räsänen, P. (2017). Online Hate and Harmful Content: Cross-National Perspectives. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315628370   

8. Aaltonen, M., Oksanen, A., & Kivivuori, J. (2016). Debt Problems and Crime. Criminology, 54(2), 307–33. https://doi.org/10.1111/1745-9125.12103  

9. Oksanen, A., Aaltonen, M., & Kivivuori, J. (2015). Driving under the Influence as a Turning Point? A Register-based Study on Financial and Social Consequences among First-time Male Offenders. Addiction, 110(3), 471–478. https://doi.org/10.1111/add.12777 

10. Oksanen, A., Garcia, D., Sirola, A., Näsi, M., Kaakinen, M., Keipi, T., & Räsänen, P. (2015). Pro-Anorexia and anti-pro-anorexia videos on YouTube: Sentiment analysis of user responses. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 17(11):e256. https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.5007