My permanent position at the Department of Cultural History is Senior lecturer. During 2022-2023 I acted as the Professor of the Cultural history.

I have worked at the Department of Cultural History since 1998, and I have held various positions: lecturer, co-ordinator, PhD scholar, university teacher, senior lecturer). I did my PhD in a project on the cultural history of women’s writing (2001–2005) which was funded by the Academy of Finland, and I defended my thesis Kirjoittaen maailmassa. Krohnin sisaret ja kirjallinen elämä (The Krohn sisters: Lives in Writing) in 2006. During my doctoral studies, I also worked as a visiting researcher at Liverpool John Moores University. In 2009–2012, I worked as a postdoctoral scholar at the Turku Institute for Advanced Studies. Since 2013, I have worked as Senior Lecturer at the Department. I have also been the vice director of SELMA: Centre for the Study of Storytelling, Experientiality and Memory since 2015.

I have been the chair of the Finnish Historical Society (2020–2021) and currently I am the chief editor of the National Biography of Finland (2020-2025). I am also a member of the curating team at Aboagora - between Arts and Sciences. Outside academia, I am one of the founding members of the literary society of Aino Kallas, and I am currently acting as the chair of the society.

I have published numerous articles in anthologies and journals (eg. Historiallinen aikakauskirja, NORA, Qualitative Research, Biography) and I am part of the editorial team of European Journal for Life-Writing.

I am also active in international life writing studies network IABA ( International ASsociation for Biography and Autobiography), and was the main organiser of the the 2022 IABA-World conference in Turku in June 2022.

My research focuses on the history of the 19th and 20th centuries, gender history, the history of writing, and biographical research, as well as more broadly on the field of life writing studies.
My most recent books include:

• Meri ja Tove. Elämää saaristossa (The Sea and Tove: Life in the Archipelago), an environmental biography co-written with Otto Latva, published in autumn 2022 by the John Nurminen Foundation.
• Uuden etsijät. Salatieteiden ja okkultismin suomalainen kulttuurihistoria 1880–1930 (Seekers of the New: A Finnish Cultural History of Occultism and Esotericism 1880–1930), edited with Antti Harmainen, published in autumn 2021 by Teos.
• Helmi Krohnin ihmeellinen elämä kulttuurivaikuttajana ja spiritualismin edelläkävijänä (The Remarkable Life of Helmi Krohn as a Cultural Influencer and Pioneer of Spiritualism), co-authored with Marjut Hjelt and Hilkka Oksama-Valtonen, published by Into.
• Päiväkirjojen jäljillä. Historiantutkimus ja omasta elämästä kirjoittaminen (In the Tracks of Diaries: Historical Research and Writing About One’s Own Life), published in summer 2020 by Vastapaino, edited with Karoliina Sjö and Liisa Lalu
  

I combine biographical and environmental research in a new project I lead, "Tarinoiden lehto – Sagalund. Kotimuseo, ympäristö ja elämänkerronnallinen aika" (The Grove of Stories – Sagalund: Home Museum, Environment, and Biographical Time) (2022–). This project explores the history and temporal layers of the Sagalund open-air museum in Kimito, including the home museum of Nils-Oskar Jansson and Adele Weman and the surrounding garden, Villa Sagalund. Through Sagalund, the project investigates lived and museal time in home museums, materiality, and the history of the archipelago environment. The project also produces visual art about Sagalund and a documentary on the scientific and artistic work.

Another central area of my research is the history of religiosity and esotericism. From 2018 to 2021, I led a project funded by the Kone Foundation titled Uuden etsijät. Esoteerisuus ja uskonnollisuuden murros modernisoituvassa Suomessa, 1880–1940 (Seekers of the New: Esotericism and the Transformation of Religiosity in Modernizing Finland, 1880–1940) [https://uudenetsijat.com]. The project resulted in several publications, museum exhibitions, and events.

I specialize in the cultural history of the 19th and 20th centuries, particularly the cultural history of writing, gender history, methodologies for autobiographical materials (letters, diaries), and especially the study of biography and life writing. My expertise also includes the history of modern religiosity and spirituality, especially in the context of esotericism. More broadly, I have also been interested in the fields of art and popular culture, such as music and film.

Currently, I am working on several biographical writing projects. One explores the cultural history of mother-daughter relationships, particularly through the life of teacher Minna Krohn and her daughters. Another is a biography of writer-translator Tyyni Tuulio, co-authored with journalist Leena Virtanen.

The methodology of environmental biography is connected to the field of humanistic environmental research, which is essential to the "Tarinoiden lehto" project. Since August 2022, I have also been involved in a multidisciplinary research project titled Kadonneet, uhanalaiset ja saapuneet lajit – Ihmisten suhde Itämeren muuttuvaan biodiversiteettiin (Lost, Endangered, and Arrived Species – Human Relationships with the Changing Biodiversity of the Baltic Sea) (HumBio).

I teach courses and supervise from BA level to PhD level, and currently I lead the BA-seminar in History as well as a course on writing in history and I am responsible for the modules of History and Life Writing and History of Religious cultures.  I am also part of the supervisor team for doctoral studies together with the professors, and supervise PhD-students in the field of cultural history and study of religion both at the University of Turku and in Tampere. I have been leading the research group Gender, Textuality and Writing together with Kirsi Tuohela since 2009. In connection to SELMA I arrange special courses and organise seminars and events.