Playful Minds – A research group uncovering how playfulness can promote learning, well-being, and innovation across the lifespan

Playful Minds is a multidisciplinary research group dedicated to exploring the playful nature of the human mind and its power to enhance learning, well-being, and creativity from early childhood to working life. We investigate how playfulness, playful learning, and imaginative, open-ended ways of engaging with the world can support learners in an increasingly complex and technology-rich society, and how to develop playful learning pedagogy across school levels.

Our international research brings together perspectives from educational sciences, technology, and organizational psychology, and draws on data collected from diverse contexts and countries. We examine playful and game-based learning learning at all school levels across disciplines, students’ playful interactions with emerging technologies such as generative AI, and the role of adult playfulness in workplaces, leadership, and professional growth.

The Playful Minds group consists of enthusiastic researchers and doctoral researchers who share a passion for understanding and cultivating playfulness as a human strength in a world facing significant societal and environmental challenges. Together, we co-create new knowledge, experiment with innovative methods, and develop future-oriented learning and working environments where playfulness is valued as both a mindset for change.

If you feel inspired by our work and would like to collaborate or become part of the Playful Minds group, I warmly invite you to send an email to marjaana.kangas(at)ulapland.fi.
More information about doctoral studies in playful learning can be found under the “Teaching and Supervising” section.

Research group members in Finland:
Katriina Heljakka, PhD., Docent, University of Turku
Outi Kallionpää, PhD., University of Lapland

Anna-Kaisa Jarkko, Doctoral student, University of Lapland
Olli Kelhä, Doctoral student, University of Lapland
Xiaoyan Li, Doctoral student, University of Lapland
Ioannis Melissourgakis, Doctoral student, University of Lapland (2026 -)
Briitta Ollonen, Doctoral student, University of Lapland
John Okewole, Doctoral student, University of Lapland
Surya Pasupuleti, Doctoral student, University of Lapland
Xiaoyu Sun, Doctoral student, University of Lapland
Shani Thissera, Doctoral student, University of Lapland (2026 -)