The emphasis of this theme is on research that generates knowledge of the lives of families and individuals, promotion and support of health and wellbeing, and effective nursing interventions. Family and individuals are perceived as active experts and promoters of their own wellbeing.
Research projects
Death of a Loved One, Grief and Coping
Lead researcher: PhD, Adjunct Professor Anna Liisa Aho
The research project explores the grief and coping process of loved ones through the lens of different cultures and causes of death. The research involves development of support interventions that promote coping in grieving individuals and assessing the impact of coping and grieving.
More information about the project Death of a Loved One, Grief and Coping
Breastfeeding Counselling
Lead researchers: Emerita Professor Marja Kaunonen and PhD, Adjunct Professor Riikka Ikonen
The research project describes and explains the breastfeeding of infants and children of various ages as well as breastfeeding counselling from the perspectives of families, professionals, and peer support providers.
The research is focused on the following areas:
- Factors related to the nutrition of infants
- Knowledge, skills, and attitudes related to breastfeeding in children over one year old
- Peer support for breastfeeding via a mobile application (led by the University of Turku)
Supporting Families with an Infant
Lead researchers: Emerita Professor Marja Kaunonen and PhD, Adjunct Professor Riikka Ikonen
The research project studies the support for infant and toddler families from the perspective of mental security and based on evidence-based nursing.
The research is focused on the following areas:
- RTC on the birth experience of spontaneous or inducted delivery and its connection of the latency period; mode of delivery and experiences of delivery
- Family centered nursing care in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU)
- Use of milk supplement in maternity hospitals and factors associated with it
- Validation of an instrument for the competence of public health nurses in breastfeeding education of mothers who breastfeed over one year old child
Evidence-based Palliative Care and Competence
Lead researcher: Professor Elina Haavisto in cooperation with PhD, Postdoctoral Researcher Anu Soikkeli-Jalonen (anu.soikkeli-jalonen [at] tuni.fi (anu[dot]soikkeli-jalonen[at]tuni[dot]fi))
The research project describes and explains good palliative care (including end-of-life care) and the required competence of nursing staff (knowledge, skills, attitude, values). It also evaluates the implementation of palliative care and associated competencies across diverse healthcare settings, considering the perspectives of patients, family members, and healthcare professionals. Furthermore, the research project involves the development of instruments and interventions aimed at enhancing the quality of care and patient safety.
The research is focused on the following areas:
- Patient participation in decision-making regarding their own care and the psychosocial support of the patient
- Psychosocial support for the family and their involvement in the patient’s care
- The patient’s care organization: competence, interprofessional collaboration, as well as burnout and professional quality of life
- Development of instruments, psychometric testing, and cultural validation
Cancer Patient and Their Family
Lead researcher: Professor Elina Haavisto in cooperation with PhD, Adjunct Professor Eeva Harju (eeva.harju [at] tuni.fi (eeva[dot]harju[at]tuni[dot]fi)) and PhD, Postdoctoral Researcher Anu Soikkeli-Jalonen (anu.soikkeli-jalonen [at] tuni.fi (anu[dot]soikkeli-jalonen[at]tuni[dot]fi))
The research project aims to describe, explain, and evaluate the psychosocial support, quality of life, and involvement in care of cancer patients, as well as that of their families, in addition to examining the functioning of the care-providing organization.
The research is focused on the following areas:
- Quality of life among patients with penile cancer
- Effectiveness of an exercise intervention on patients’ quality of life
- Participation of patients with prostate cancer in decision‑making regarding their own care
- Families’ and pediatric cancer patients’ experiences of the child’s use of opioids for pain management
- Collaboration between specialized healthcare and the Cancer Society in delivering psychosocial support to patients
- Development of instruments, psychometric testing, and cultural validation
- Effectiveness of the developed interventions
Mental Wellbeing and Psychiatric Nursing
Lead researcher: PhD, Professor (tenure track) Jari Kylmä.
The research project describes and explains factors connected to mental wellbeing, develops interventions that promote mental wellbeing, and evaluates their impact in various contexts.
The research is focused on the following areas:
- Positive mental health
- Interventions promoting mental health and psychiatric nursing interventions
- Hope as an element of positive mental health
- Interventions that strengthen hope in various contexts
Diversity of Sexual and Gender Identities and Health
Lead researcher: PhD, Professor (tenure track) Jari Kylmä
The research project describes and explains the factors connected to the health of people with different sexual and gender identities, develops health-enhancing interventions, and assesses their effectiveness in various contexts.
The research is focused on the following areas:
- Promotion of sexual health
- Lives and health of young people, people of working age and older people who belong to sexual and gender minorities
- Lives and health of families who belong to sexual and gender minorities
- Encountering people who belong to sexual and gender minorities in social welfare and healthcare services
Health of Children, Youth and Families
Lead researchers: Professor Katja Joronen and PhD, Adjunct Professor Anja Rantanen
In this research project, we examine perceived health, life situations, and concerns and support needs related to health and well-being. The topics are investigated both at the population level and among those in challenging life situations, such as young caregivers. In addition, we explore how young people can participate in nursing science research following the patient and public involvement approach.
Social Media and Health
Lead researcher: Professor Katja Joronen
In this research project, we investigate the role of social media in promoting health and well-being. We also describe followers’ health literacy, interpretation of messages, and everyday use, and analyze how influencers communicate health-related issues.
Mental Health Promotion
Lead researcher: Professor Katja Joronen
In this research project, we study mental health literacy, positive mental health, and strategies for mental health promotion among different population groups, including people with chronic illnesses. We also describe actions for promoting (mental) health at national, regional, and local levels and explain how structures and practices support (mental) health.
Children and Young People Who Have Experienced Sexual Violence
Lead researcher: PhD, Adjunct Professor Riikka Ikonen
The research project describes and explains the prevalence of experiencing sexual violence in childhood and adolescence, the wellbeing of these children and young people, and reporting the incident to a parent.
The research is focused on the following areas:
- Factors related to reporting sexual violence
- Sexual violence experienced by young people placed in care, related factors, and the wellbeing of these young people