Pekka Isotalus
Biographic Data
| ID | 179739 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Pekka Isotalus |
| GIVEN NAMES | Pekka |
| FAMILY NAME | Isotalus |
| SIGNATURE | ISOTALUS P |
| AFFILIATIONS | Tampere University |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-3782-1286 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 19 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 8 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 19 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2012 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
‘Communism made me do it’: Disruptive right-wing publics as a polarising force in TikTok comments
TikTok is currently one of the most topical social media platforms in modern democracies due to its ability to reach large, young audiences and the concerns over outside influences and the algorithmic nature of feeds. In Finland, the parliamentary elections of 2023 marked an increase in interest for the platform. At the same time, polarisation is also a trending subject in European social media and society, with TikTok being discussed as one of t…
Puolueiden ja puoluejohtajien vaaliviestinnän muutos sosiaalisessa mediassa vuosien 2019 ja 2023 eduskuntavaalien välillä
Sosiaalisen median merkitys poliittisessa viestinnässä on nykyisin suuri varsinkin vaalikampanjoinnissa. Tässä tutkimuksessa tarkastellaan vaaliviestinnän muutosta sosiaalisessa mediassa vuosien 2019 ja 2023 eduskuntavaalien välillä. Aineisto kerättiin vaaleja edeltäneen kuukauden ajalta Twitteristä (nykyisin X) ja Instagramista eduskuntapuolueiden sekä niiden puheenjohtajien tileiltä. Aineisto käsittää 3 890 sosiaalisen median viestiä. Analyysim…
Live and learn”: Artist celebrification negotiations in professional relationships in the Finnish music industry
This study examines the discursive (re)production of music celebrity as artist celebrification. The intrapersonal and interpersonal challenges related to celebrity demonstrate a need for a deeper investigation of celebrity production. Finnish popular music artists are interviewed to understand their perceptions of celebrification in professional relationships with managers, publicists, and A&Rs. Using relational dialectics theory and contrapuntal…
Having it both ways: Learning communication skills in face-to-face and online environments
In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced educators to transition to online teaching almost overnight. This paper focuses on students’ perceptions of communication skills in a practice course in the spring of 2020. The beginning of the course was held face-to-face and conducted online at the end. We sought information regarding students’ experiences of online course in a skill-based course. Relying on knowledge about online communication, we se…
Personalized Politics in Traditional and Social Media: The Case of the 2019 Finnish Parliamentary Elections
Personalization of politics is a well-established field of research, yet not much is known about how the phenomenon has been influenced by the increased use of social media as a tool for political communication. In this research we analyze media personalization in newspapers and on social media posts of parties and party leaders during the 2019 Finnish parliamentary elections. Combining quantitative and qualitative content analysis, we find that …
A Successful Structure for Short Sales Pitches: Insights from a Finnish Pitching Competition
Presentation skills play a major role when entrepreneurs aim to attract investors’ interest. Although previous studies provide insights into important structural elements of sales pitches, research has not focused on investigating an effective sales pitch structure and entrepreneurs’ rhetorical strategies in a Finnish context. The aim of this study is to identify how short sales pitches are structured in a pitching competition in Finland. Entrepr…
Interpersonal dynamics of fame: Celebrity Discourses in Commercial Music Artist's Romantic Relationships
Commercial music artists seek celebrity capital, which has central value in the music industry and broader society. Previous literature suggests that besides advantages, fame is connected to interpersonal issues in close relationships. The marginalised celebrity discourses emerging from well-known artists’ close interpersonal relationships are examined to better understand the interpersonal dynamics of fame. Relational dialectics theory is applie…
The Listening Public in Public Diplomacy: How Did the Public Respond to President Zelensky on Twitter
This exploratory study focuses on the public as a listening ensemble that takes part in public diplomacy on Twitter. Here, listening is considered as the receiving component of communication, and responsive behavior as its visible product. The focus is on public communication that followed Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. A total of 4,392 quote tweets (citing the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky's tweets mentioning Ukraine's possible mem…
Functions of Hybrid Media: How Parties and Their Leaders Use Traditional Media in Their Social Media Campaign Communication
Political campaign communication has become increasingly hybrid and the ability to create synergies between older and newer media is now a prerequisite for running a successful campaign. Nevertheless, beyond establishing that parties and individual politicians use social media to gain visibility in traditional media, not much is known about how political actors use the hybrid media system in their campaign communication. At the same time, the per…
Ystävyyttä vai illuusiota: Parasosiaalisen suhteen näkyminen seuraajien viesteissä sosiaalisen median vaikuttajalle
Sosiaalisen median vaikuttajien seuraajille voi muodostua affektiivisia ystävyyden kaltaisia tunnesiteitä eli parasosiaalisia suhteita seuraamiansa mediapersoonia kohtaan. Sosiaalisessa mediassa on otolliset lähtökohdat parasosiaalisten tunteiden syntymiselle ja kehittymiselle, kun vaikuttajat päästävät katsojat kurkistamaan elämäänsä kuvien ja videoiden välityksellä, kertovat itsestään henkilökohtaisia asioita seuraajilleen ja puhuttelevat yleis…
Patients' Interpersonal Communication Experiences in the Context of Type 2 Diabetes Care
The aim of our study is to determine the relational communication characteristics of professional-patient communication situations that have either facilitated or impeded patients' self-management. Conducted from the perspective of Finnish patients in the context of type 2 diabetes care, we used as our research methods an open e-survey and semistructured interviews. Data were analyzed using inductive qualitative content analysis. The critical inc…
Relational tensions and professionally optimal listening in the legal communication context: Finnish judges’ perceptions of their own listening
Relational Tensions and Optimal Listening in the Communication Relationships of American and Finnish Legal Professionals
Drawing on relational dialectics, this study examines definitions of optimal listening, the tensions affecting it, cultural differences in both of these and strategies for managing tensions. The participant sample (N = 101) consists of 76 American attorneys and 25 Finnish judges. The results suggest that differences in national communication cultures and the requirements of professional communication affect the definitions of optimal listening. T…
Mediatization and Political Leadership: Perspectives of the Finnish newspapers and party leaders
Mediatization of politics has been observed to occur in many different ways. In the research of mediatization, one central area focuses on political actors and the degree to which they are governed by media logic or political logic. In this area, the political leaders have a key role. In this study, we focus on the relationship between the media and political leaders. Our first aim is to consider how the Finnish press and the political leaders th…
Supporting others – Supporting oneself: Members’ evaluations of supportive communication in Al-Anon mutual-aid groups
Offer No Readymade Solutions”: Men's support provision in specific episodes with an upset friend
Talking troubles with Finnish men: Meaningful Contexts of 'Supportive Silence
This study focuses on Finnish men's talk about troubles and on contexts that shape the communication situation. The data consists of 25 thematic interviews with Finnish-born men of varying ages. We found that men talked about their troubles in face-to-face settings that enabled them to relax. Two specific cultural terms for talk about troubles were distinguished: Talking serious (puhua vakavia) and talking deep (puhua henkeviä). Alcohol was invol…
Evaluating the use of criteria for assessing profession-specific communication skills in pharmacy
One central task in higher education is to provide students with interpersonal communication competence in their profession. To achieve this, specialised training, based on an understanding of disciplinary communication practices and appropriate assessment methods, is needed. However, there is a lack of reliable assessment instruments which are designed to assess profession-specific communication skills and to strengthen students’ reflective skil…
Two Perspectives on the Communication Skills of Political Leaders
This study aimed to outline the current communication skills of political leaders. Media data, in total 5,697 items, were collected from four newspapers in Finland over a period of six months in 2008. The interview data consist of eight interviews with Finnish party leaders. All materials were analyzed by qualitative content analysis. Two kinds of perspectives are described: the media perspective by illustrating what kind of descriptions, evaluat…
Patients' Interpersonal Communication Experiences in the Context of Type 2 Diabetes Care
The aim of our study is to determine the relational communication characteristics of professional-patient communication situations that have either facilitated or impeded patients' self-management. Conducted from the perspective of Finnish patients in the context of type 2 diabetes care, we used as our research methods an open e-survey and semistructured interviews. Data were analyzed using inductive qualitative content analysis. The critical inc…
Mediatization and Political Leadership: Perspectives of the Finnish newspapers and party leaders
Mediatization of politics has been observed to occur in many different ways. In the research of mediatization, one central area focuses on political actors and the degree to which they are governed by media logic or political logic. In this area, the political leaders have a key role. In this study, we focus on the relationship between the media and political leaders. Our first aim is to consider how the Finnish press and the political leaders th…
Interpersonal dynamics of fame: Celebrity Discourses in Commercial Music Artist's Romantic Relationships
Commercial music artists seek celebrity capital, which has central value in the music industry and broader society. Previous literature suggests that besides advantages, fame is connected to interpersonal issues in close relationships. The marginalised celebrity discourses emerging from well-known artists’ close interpersonal relationships are examined to better understand the interpersonal dynamics of fame. Relational dialectics theory is applie…
Talking troubles with Finnish men: Meaningful Contexts of 'Supportive Silence
This study focuses on Finnish men's talk about troubles and on contexts that shape the communication situation. The data consists of 25 thematic interviews with Finnish-born men of varying ages. We found that men talked about their troubles in face-to-face settings that enabled them to relax. Two specific cultural terms for talk about troubles were distinguished: Talking serious (puhua vakavia) and talking deep (puhua henkeviä). Alcohol was invol…
Evaluating the use of criteria for assessing profession-specific communication skills in pharmacy
One central task in higher education is to provide students with interpersonal communication competence in their profession. To achieve this, specialised training, based on an understanding of disciplinary communication practices and appropriate assessment methods, is needed. However, there is a lack of reliable assessment instruments which are designed to assess profession-specific communication skills and to strengthen students’ reflective skil…
Two Perspectives on the Communication Skills of Political Leaders
This study aimed to outline the current communication skills of political leaders. Media data, in total 5,697 items, were collected from four newspapers in Finland over a period of six months in 2008. The interview data consist of eight interviews with Finnish party leaders. All materials were analyzed by qualitative content analysis. Two kinds of perspectives are described: the media perspective by illustrating what kind of descriptions, evaluat…
Relational Tensions and Optimal Listening in the Communication Relationships of American and Finnish Legal Professionals
Drawing on relational dialectics, this study examines definitions of optimal listening, the tensions affecting it, cultural differences in both of these and strategies for managing tensions. The participant sample (N = 101) consists of 76 American attorneys and 25 Finnish judges. The results suggest that differences in national communication cultures and the requirements of professional communication affect the definitions of optimal listening. T…
Mediatization and Political Leadership: Perspectives of the Finnish newspapers and party leaders
Mediatization of politics has been observed to occur in many different ways. In the research of mediatization, one central area focuses on political actors and the degree to which they are governed by media logic or political logic. In this area, the political leaders have a key role. In this study, we focus on the relationship between the media and political leaders. Our first aim is to consider how the Finnish press and the political leaders th…
Supporting others – Supporting oneself: Members’ evaluations of supportive communication in Al-Anon mutual-aid groups
Offer No Readymade Solutions”: Men's support provision in specific episodes with an upset friend
Talking troubles with Finnish men: Meaningful Contexts of 'Supportive Silence
This study focuses on Finnish men's talk about troubles and on contexts that shape the communication situation. The data consists of 25 thematic interviews with Finnish-born men of varying ages. We found that men talked about their troubles in face-to-face settings that enabled them to relax. Two specific cultural terms for talk about troubles were distinguished: Talking serious (puhua vakavia) and talking deep (puhua henkeviä). Alcohol was invol…
Relational tensions and professionally optimal listening in the legal communication context: Finnish judges’ perceptions of their own listening
Patients' Interpersonal Communication Experiences in the Context of Type 2 Diabetes Care
The aim of our study is to determine the relational communication characteristics of professional-patient communication situations that have either facilitated or impeded patients' self-management. Conducted from the perspective of Finnish patients in the context of type 2 diabetes care, we used as our research methods an open e-survey and semistructured interviews. Data were analyzed using inductive qualitative content analysis. The critical inc…
Ystävyyttä vai illuusiota: Parasosiaalisen suhteen näkyminen seuraajien viesteissä sosiaalisen median vaikuttajalle
Sosiaalisen median vaikuttajien seuraajille voi muodostua affektiivisia ystävyyden kaltaisia tunnesiteitä eli parasosiaalisia suhteita seuraamiansa mediapersoonia kohtaan. Sosiaalisessa mediassa on otolliset lähtökohdat parasosiaalisten tunteiden syntymiselle ja kehittymiselle, kun vaikuttajat päästävät katsojat kurkistamaan elämäänsä kuvien ja videoiden välityksellä, kertovat itsestään henkilökohtaisia asioita seuraajilleen ja puhuttelevat yleis…
Functions of Hybrid Media: How Parties and Their Leaders Use Traditional Media in Their Social Media Campaign Communication
Political campaign communication has become increasingly hybrid and the ability to create synergies between older and newer media is now a prerequisite for running a successful campaign. Nevertheless, beyond establishing that parties and individual politicians use social media to gain visibility in traditional media, not much is known about how political actors use the hybrid media system in their campaign communication. At the same time, the per…
Having it both ways: Learning communication skills in face-to-face and online environments
In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced educators to transition to online teaching almost overnight. This paper focuses on students’ perceptions of communication skills in a practice course in the spring of 2020. The beginning of the course was held face-to-face and conducted online at the end. We sought information regarding students’ experiences of online course in a skill-based course. Relying on knowledge about online communication, we se…
Personalized Politics in Traditional and Social Media: The Case of the 2019 Finnish Parliamentary Elections
Personalization of politics is a well-established field of research, yet not much is known about how the phenomenon has been influenced by the increased use of social media as a tool for political communication. In this research we analyze media personalization in newspapers and on social media posts of parties and party leaders during the 2019 Finnish parliamentary elections. Combining quantitative and qualitative content analysis, we find that …
A Successful Structure for Short Sales Pitches: Insights from a Finnish Pitching Competition
Presentation skills play a major role when entrepreneurs aim to attract investors’ interest. Although previous studies provide insights into important structural elements of sales pitches, research has not focused on investigating an effective sales pitch structure and entrepreneurs’ rhetorical strategies in a Finnish context. The aim of this study is to identify how short sales pitches are structured in a pitching competition in Finland. Entrepr…
Interpersonal dynamics of fame: Celebrity Discourses in Commercial Music Artist's Romantic Relationships
Commercial music artists seek celebrity capital, which has central value in the music industry and broader society. Previous literature suggests that besides advantages, fame is connected to interpersonal issues in close relationships. The marginalised celebrity discourses emerging from well-known artists’ close interpersonal relationships are examined to better understand the interpersonal dynamics of fame. Relational dialectics theory is applie…
The Listening Public in Public Diplomacy: How Did the Public Respond to President Zelensky on Twitter
This exploratory study focuses on the public as a listening ensemble that takes part in public diplomacy on Twitter. Here, listening is considered as the receiving component of communication, and responsive behavior as its visible product. The focus is on public communication that followed Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. A total of 4,392 quote tweets (citing the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky's tweets mentioning Ukraine's possible mem…
Puolueiden ja puoluejohtajien vaaliviestinnän muutos sosiaalisessa mediassa vuosien 2019 ja 2023 eduskuntavaalien välillä
Sosiaalisen median merkitys poliittisessa viestinnässä on nykyisin suuri varsinkin vaalikampanjoinnissa. Tässä tutkimuksessa tarkastellaan vaaliviestinnän muutosta sosiaalisessa mediassa vuosien 2019 ja 2023 eduskuntavaalien välillä. Aineisto kerättiin vaaleja edeltäneen kuukauden ajalta Twitteristä (nykyisin X) ja Instagramista eduskuntapuolueiden sekä niiden puheenjohtajien tileiltä. Aineisto käsittää 3 890 sosiaalisen median viestiä. Analyysim…
Live and learn”: Artist celebrification negotiations in professional relationships in the Finnish music industry
This study examines the discursive (re)production of music celebrity as artist celebrification. The intrapersonal and interpersonal challenges related to celebrity demonstrate a need for a deeper investigation of celebrity production. Finnish popular music artists are interviewed to understand their perceptions of celebrification in professional relationships with managers, publicists, and A&Rs. Using relational dialectics theory and contrapuntal…
‘Communism made me do it’: Disruptive right-wing publics as a polarising force in TikTok comments
TikTok is currently one of the most topical social media platforms in modern democracies due to its ability to reach large, young audiences and the concerns over outside influences and the algorithmic nature of feeds. In Finland, the parliamentary elections of 2023 marked an increase in interest for the platform. At the same time, polarisation is also a trending subject in European social media and society, with TikTok being discussed as one of t…
Psychology (10 works) · Sociology (10 works) · Social Psychology (8 works) · Political science (7 works) · Social Media and Politics (7 works) · Law (5 works) · Media studies (5 works) · Media Studies and Communication (5 works) · Politics (5 works) · Public relations (5 works)