What did I study?
My research focused on workshops that approached futures experientially. My interest was focused on the possibilities of arts-based approaches to make the future experienced in the present. I constructed arts-based approaches especially from the perspectives of embodied engagement, narratives and aesthetic experience.
The study's main observations
Narratives can be used to make fictional future states feel believable. Physicality can take the form of functional tasks in workshops that support participants' inspiration and imagination. By designing the workshop from the perspective of aesthetic experience, the emotional comprehensiveness of the future state can be strengthened. Arts-based approaches can generate personal reflection that integrates into the individual's life circle and change processes.
How can the results be applied?
I propose directions for further theory building and practical applicability. As a singular item, I present a concept of Futures space, which I construct as an experiential futures workshop where participants learn about themselves and the world, and also as any possible venue where everyday choices are made and future thinking is learned and taught. It can, for example, take the form of a purchase situation in which a consumer struggles with different sustainability dimensions of a product.
The examination of MSc Jouko Myllyoja's doctoral dissertation " Accessing futures with arts-based approaches" will be held in the Martti Ahtisaari Hall of the Agora building of the University of Jyväskylä on Friday, June 26, 2026, starting at 12:00. The opponent will be university researcher Kai Lehikoinen (University of the Arts Helsinki). The custos will be university lecturer Tarja Pääjoki (University of Jyväskylä). The examination will be held in English. The examination can be followed on site or remotely.
Follow the public defense remotely
Contact:
Jouko Myllyoja
jouko.t.myllyoja@jyu.fi
+358 40 571 3722
