Re-imagining the Futures of Minimalism

Industry 5.0, also called the fifth industrial revolution, describes a shift in society's focus from an economy-centred approach to people's social value and well-being. It is a new phase of industrialisation in which people work together with advanced technology in a way that improves both the quality of the work process and well-being at work. At the heart of Industry 5.0 are people-centredness, sustainability, and resilience.

Our research group explores this phenomenon from an interdisciplinary and broad humanistic perspective. Our aim is to investigate how the working lives of people in professional positions have changed and how future technological transformations will affect the meaningfulness of work. In recent years, the fragmentation of work, the loss of a sense of control, and the accelerating pace of work have reduced its meaningfulness (Virtaluoto & Selkälä, 2022). Our goal is to discover how technological solutions can be used to reduce fragmentation and give workers time to focus on their core tasks.

Digitalisation has changed the world around us so that managing the information overload has become more important than ever. The role of technical communication is to help people interact with complex products, applications, and services as smoothly and seamlessly as possible. Our research group members have deep experience in technical communication and a profound understanding of both the practical challenges of expert work and academic research in the field. Our research is explicitly aimed at being relevant and applicable in the world of work.

Projects

Our project Meaningful Digital Evolution (MDE), a joint venture with the PIRG Research Group at the Tampere University, will run from 1 August 2025 to 31 July 2027. The project is funded by Business Finland. 

The project aims to discover methods and digital, AI-based tools to streamline work processes, reduce work fragmentation and technostress, and make work more meaningful and productive in the technology sector. 

The project seeks to understand how AI affects work life, what new processes and professions will emerge, and how technologies like XR work with AI in work settings. It also intends to increase the understanding of technostress and work fragmentation's impact on knowledge workers and develop tools to enhance wellbeing and reduce fragmentation.