JYU.Well - School of Wellbeing

JYU.Well is an interdisciplinary community of wellbeing researchers and a profiling area at the University of Jyväskylä. Our aim is to consolidate the University's strategy of promoting wisdom and wellbeing for people and society by bringing together research and education done in different faculties.

Integrating diverse disciplinary insights on wellbeing

JYU.Well promotes collaboration and a crossdisciplinary approach to wellbeing among researchers, educators and specialists from various fields. We offer new paths for active scientific collaboration. Moreover, we provide various networking possibilities for researchers and practical experts. Our community also functions as a platform for new researchers who want to discuss their ideas and projects in an interdisciplinary setting to produce highly impactful research.

Research on wellbeing and health is conducted in all the faculties operating at the University of Jyväskylä. The departments and research units of these faculties offer a range of courses examining wellbeing from different perspectives. The range of expertise at the University covers all stages of human life as well as social environments and contexts, including family life, school and working life. Other central research themes include rehabilitative care and therapeutical practices.

How does JYU.Well operate?

As a networking hub, JYU.Well actively strengthens societal impact of wellbeing research, and cooperation with practice. We have strategic collaboration agreements with the Wellbeing Services County of Central Finland, Finnish Institute for Occupational Health, and Peurunka Foundation.

JYU.Well brings together researchers, scholars, practitioners, educators, and students interested in wellbeing and health. Multidisciplinary networking is supported by organizing seminars, workshops, and other events. JYU.Well also offers an interdisciplinary peer mentoring programme for postdoctoral researchers to further prepare them for a fulfilling academic career, with new mentors and mentees sought every academic year.

One of the goals of JYU.Well is to develop the availability and accessibility of wellbeing education and training at the university. Our Dimensions of Wellbeing MOOC (Massive Online Open Course. 1 cr.) provides an open, high-quality online course for all those interested in the different aspects of human wellbeing. This course is available both in English and in Finnish (Hyvinvoinnin monet muodot).

JYU.Well draws together expertise from across the University's six faculties into a distinct, yet complementary, research environment to facilitate active collaboration and common research agendas. Our community includes numerous research groups, experts, and postdoctoral researchers who specialize in our core research themes.

The activities to support the community are coordinated by a multdisciplinary scientific steering group, three chairpersons, a coordinator and senior advisor. Read more about the JYU.Well community via the link below.

JYU.Well community and contact information

The wellbeing research community JYU.Well celebrates its 5th birthday this year. JYU.Well was launched in the summer of 2021.

In this relatively short time, we have developed several new ways of working within our community, through which our multidisciplinary work for the visibility and impact of well-being research has been translated into action and benefits.

Read more and be surprised how JYU.Well has been working to develop a wide range of activities to support wellbeing research, communication and impact by highlighting ideas, people and research results! Read our brochures introducing our work that was done between years 2021 to 2024 and in 2025.

JYU.Well in Action 2025 brochure

JYU.Well in Action 2021-2024 brochure

Would you like to deepen your knowledge of research methods and find out how different academic disciplines collect and analyse data and generate new knowledge? ‘Methods Monday’ brings together researchers and those interested in science to explore the diversity of research methods and interdisciplinary connections. Come along to learn and network!

Mon 28.9. at 12.00 (Tietoniekka): Professor Tuomas Eerola

JYU.Well organized a peer mentoring program for postdoc researchers for the second time in the academic year 2025–2026 to further prepare post doctoral researchers for their academic paths. The mentoring was conducted as guided activites in small interdisciplinary groups over the course of one academic year. There were 28 pots doctoral participants and 12 mentors from all the JYU faculties

History:

2015–2021: Peer mentoring for doctoral students, organized by Terhi Nokkala and Johanna Kiili

2023–2024: Peer mentoring for post doctoral researchers with 7 mentoring groups oreganized by JYU.Well. 35 post doctoral researchers and 14 mentors from all the JYU faculties.

2024–2025: Series of "Academic life discussions" events organized by JYU.Well for the whole university research community to discuss the themes found more interesting in the mentoring programme:

8.10. Future planning and work requirements in academia
28.11. Balance between work and personal life
18.2. Uncommon topics and disappointments rarely discussed
8.4. Internationalisation and integration

The JYU.Well summer team is an operating model that allows students from different fields to take part in multidisciplinary collaboration on wellbeing. We bring together advanced-stage students from various disciplines to work on diverse expert tasks related to a given theme, also assigning the team responsibilities in planning and organizing.

Introducing summer team 2025

Introducing summer team 2024

Build your understanding of the multidimensionality of wellbeing, structure your own thinking, and also learn about other people's perspectives on wellbeing. The open study course "Dimensions of wellbeing" introduces the broad concept of wellbeing from the perspectives of individuals, communities, and societies, and builds understanding of multidimensionality of wellbeing. You can study the course online with your own pace - please reserve approximately 27 work hours to complete the course. You will get the course credit (1 ECTS credit) in approximately one week after you have completed all the course assignments.

from here if you ARE student or staff member of JYU

from here if you are NOT student of JYU

Current news on wellbeing

Study: A child’s absences from school can challenge parenting

A child’s prolonged difficulties in attending school put a strain on the whole family. According to a new study prolonged school refusal causes parents to feel guilt, uncertainty and concern, and alters their perception of their own parenting.

Henkilö juoksemassa syksyisessä maisemassa

Fear of self-compassion may increase mental health vulnerability among perfectionistic athletes

In a study conducted at the University of Jyväskylä, fear of self-compassion emerged as a significant factor potentially increasing vulnerability to mental health problems among perfectionistic competitive athletes.

When does the brain silence the voice of the heart? Does it improve mental health?

Does the brain listen more closely to the heart when the information is crucial to a person? This is what Tahnée Engelen, a researcher in cognitive neuroscience at the University of Jyväskylä, aims to demonstrate.

More current news

JYU.Well Events

Join Start to Finnish – an online course on Finnish working life

Online course on Finnish working life

University of Jyväskylä at the Jyväskylä Book Fair 21-22 November

Jyväskylä Book Fair brings together literature and culture enthusiasts at the Paviljonki Exhibition and Event Center on November 21–22, 2026. University's Science for All activities will be at the event – check out our stage program and come and visit our

5.12.2026 MA Alicia Lucendo Noriega (Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, music education)

MA Alicia Lucendo Noriega defends their doctoral dissertation in music education "Social-emotional experiences in early childhood music education".

More upcoming events

Multidisciplinary wellbeing research

JYU.Well creates opportunities for interdisciplinary academic debate and ambitious collaboration between researchers as well as researchers and external operators.

Research search

Multidisciplinary wellbeing is a key part of JYU's strategy. As part of the university's profiling, JYU.Well brings together expertise in wellbeing from different disciplines to create a more holistic and impactful whole. JYU.Well produces socially impactful wellbeing research by analysing, developing, and disseminating new research-based interventions, administrative solutions and policy recommendations.

Dissertation news and upcoming public examination events related to wellbeing research

13.11.2026 MARes Youngbin Kwon (Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, social and public policy)

MARes Youngbin Kwon defends their doctoral dissertation in social and public policy "Sustaining Care in Ageing Societies: Comparative Community-based Integrated Care for Older People in Finland, England and South Korea".

14.11.2026 YTM Tanja Penninkangas (Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, social work)

YTM Tanja Penninkangas defends their doctoral dissertation in social work "Muutosjohtajuus sosiaali- ja terveydenhuollon palvelurakenneuudistuksessa – tavoitteet ja toteutuminen sosiaalihuollon näkökulmasta".

14.11.2026 Lic.Phil. Mirja Hämäläinen (Faculty of Education and Psychology, Teacher Education)

Lic.Phil. Mirja Hämäläinen defends her doctoral dissertation in teacher education "Ethics, Sustainable Development, and Well-Being in Language Education: Practicing Bohmian Dialogue in English as a Lingua Franca".

More dissertation news and upcoming public examination events

Multidisciplinary wellbeing studies

In addition to conducting and developing wellbeing research, our community supports the teaching of wellbeing and its societal impact in all disciplines and faculties at the University of Jyväskylä. The university’s courses offer a variety of perspectives on wellbeing and encompass all aspects of individual, community and societal wellbeing.

Wellbeing microcontent library

Join the JYU.Well community!

We are an open community of scholars, students, and specialists interested in interdisciplinary collaboration and integrating of diverse perspectives on wellbeing. We have a bilingual (Finnish-English) monthly newsletter. We also organize events and provide various networking possibilities.

Everyone is welcome to join our mailing list. Just fill in the form linked below. Signing up for the mailing list will keep you informed about the events and other topical issues concerning wellbeing and health at JYU. You can use the same form to enroll yourself as an expert of wellbeing, which will help us to bring visibility to your research and further your network.

Subscribe our newsletter and join our mailing list