A brief history

Why do we sometimes find it easy to resist temptation and at other times, so very difficult? My PhD thesis Leiden University, NL was about how impulse control relies on memory. Previous theories held that our brains are like a muscle that has a finite amount of power, which gets ‘ego-depleted’ after use. Instead, I showed that the degree we can exercise cognitive control is a direct function of how one situation retrieves another one. The basic gist is that you’re more likely to restrain yourself from gorging on fast food if the present temptation (e.g. seeing a McD’s while hungry) is similar (another McD’s) rather than a dissimilar one (a Pizza Hut). 

I then held post-doc positions in Nottingham (UK) and Helsinki (Finland), gaining expertise in the use of EEG to study motor control, perception/action, functional connectivity, social neuroscience, and haptics. Moving back to England, I took on a role as lecturer (Assistant Professor) in Psychology at Liverpool Hope University, maintaining a research profile on executive control and affective neuroscience and gaining much teaching experience. In 2018, I returned to Finland, focus on interdisciplinary research in Computer Science and Psychology. A senior researcher and docent (Adjunct Professor) in cognitive neuroscience, I am currently working with machine learning experts to study perception and emotion using EEG based brain-computer interfaces.

Research interests

  • Have a look at my CV (career, teaching portfolio, publications).
  • Read about what the media say about my research (and see some videos I made).