Polaris Koi
@polariskoi.bsky.social
Asst Prof of Philosophy at the University of Turku, Finland Co-founder of Ronroo Mental health, agency, cogsci, decision-making, neurodiversity, ethics Out & proud queer trans man 🏳️🌈🏳️⚧ www.polariskoi.com
@catieosaurus.bsky.social interviewed me for her podcast, "Sorry, I Missed This". We talked about the myth that #ADHD makes self-control impossible, and about how to navigate self-regulation in a way that works with rather than against different cognitive styles. www.understood.org/en/podcasts/...
ADHD and impulse control: The science behind why willpower fails
The “just try harder” advice is wrong. Dr. Polaris Koi explains what self-control actually looks like for ADHD brains.
understood.org
#CommitmentMatters A really cool little workshop on what commitments are and on what they are good for at Tampere University today. Talks by Caroline Arruda (Tulane), @polariskoi.bsky.social (Turku), @artolaitinen.bsky.social (Tampere), and Lilian O’Brien (Tampere/Helsinki).
philevents.org/event/show/1... Philosophers of mind/cognitive science: please consider submitting your abstract to the 4th online conference of the @ispsm.bsky.social 👇 • Great line-up of keynote speakers • Deadline: 31 July 2026 • Online conference: 4-6 November 2026
The 4th annual conference of the The International Society for the Philosophy of the Sciences of the Mind
Call for Abstracts The International Society for the Philosophy of the Sciences of the Mind (ISPSM) is happy to invite all philosophers working on any science of the mind (broadly construed) to...
philevents.org
New article alert! In which I spell out the role of nonvoluntary attention in self-control #psychology #selfcontrol #cogsci #philsky www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Attention and self-control: self-regulation from the bottom up
According to a widespread view, self-control is a top-down cognitive process that downregulates bottom-up processes, where those bottom-up processes, …
sciencedirect.com
Really proud of my postdoc @anssibwalya.bsky.social and the team for their upcoming edited volume, "Psykologian vallan kumous: Irti terapiakulttuurista"! The volume interrogates how psychology could inform more system-aware, holistic approaches to well-being over self-help.
Psykologian vallan kumous
”Ehkä terapiayhteiskunnan sijaan tarvitsemme terapeuttisen yhteiskunnan, jossa tavoite olisi pelkkien terapiapalveluiden sijaan luoda yhteiskunnallisia olosuhteita, jotka olisivat itsessään terapeutti...
vastapaino.fi
Hey UK colleagues! I'll be in London, visiting @sanchayanbanerj.bsky.social at the @kingscollegelondon.bsky.social , mid-April to mid-May. If you'd like to talk shop over ☕ or would like a talk (ADHD / self-control / nonideal agency / choice sets / AI and human metacognition) let me know!
Is self-control always in accordance with our better judgment? Polaris Koi argues that this is not the case, and advances a new framework to understand self-control. Check the paper here: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Value-deflationist self-control
On the standard conception of self-control, self-control entails the resolution of a motivational conflict in favour of the option ranked better, loftier, or otherwise more valuable, and behaving a...
tandfonline.com
New #openaccess article just out! #selfregulation #philsky www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Value-deflationist self-control
On the standard conception of self-control, self-control entails the resolution of a motivational conflict in favour of the option ranked better, loftier, or otherwise more valuable, and behaving a...
tandfonline.com
Latest episode! The brilliant @polariskoi.bsky.social on everything self-control. If you ever feel like this is a weak area for you, you HAVE to give this a listen - you're doing way better than you think! Listen: www.academicimperfectionist.com/podcast/127
The impeccsable @rebeccaroache.bsky.social interviewed me on self-control on the @academicimp.bsky.social podcast. It was a huge pleasure to get to rant, unbridled, about my work on self-control, neurodiversity, and how individual differences in self-control are a structural justice problem.
#127: Professor Polaris Koi on why self-control is not what you think it is — The Academic Imperfectionist
Be honest. You're here because you think you completely suck at self-control, aren't you? You're constantly disappointing yourself, and it's getting you down. The people around you seem to be able to ...
academicimperfectionist.com
That feeling when the journal portal says "decision in process" and this starts playing in your head #academia #peerreview www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3qP...
The Smiths - Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want (Official Audio)
YouTube video by The Smiths
youtube.com
New open access paper out, with @anssibwalya.bsky.social as lead author. 🥂There's been lots of research on whether people think self-control is limited, but less research on whether people think it's fixed or malleable. Our study shows these dimensions are distinct. #selfcontrol
Measuring Self-Control Beliefs: A Multidimensional and Domain-Specific Perspective - Anssi Bwalya, Polaris Koi, Hugh Rabagliati, Nicolas Chevalier, 2026
Self-control allows people to align their behaviour with intention in the face of a motivational conflict. Lay beliefs about self-control are associated with se...
journals.sagepub.com
Saana Lehtinen interviewed me about our startup, #Ronroo, on Health Incubator Helsinki's newsletter. It was great to chat about why executive functioning is so important for quality of life, and why it's about more than just #ADHD. healthincubatorhelsinki.com/news-and-eve...
Ronroo brings executive functioning support within everyone's reach - Health Incubator Helsinki
Health Incubator Helsinki startup Ronroo helps people develop self-regulation skills with research-based exercises.
healthincubatorhelsinki.com
2026 is around the corner. I, ever impulsive, started a Medium. medium.com/@polariskoi/... #adhd #planning #productivity
How to Plan for the Year Ahead If You Hate Plans
Yes, even if you’re anxious, avoidant, or ADHD (like me)
medium.com
A paper published in Scientific Reports has ...worrisome... methods. Some have raised concerns about the integrity of Sci Reports — maybe this will spur more in depth scrutiny. (Which sucks for all the good scientists who’ve published good papers there.) #AI Via @jeppsson.bsky.social rdcu.be/eR40o
#Job: I am hiring a #postdoc! If you are interested in agency & metacognition, and their relationship to human-computer interaction, you could be the person I'm looking for. Lots of opportunities for impact & policy work for those so inclined. Spread the word! ats.talentadore.com/apply/erikoi...
Senior researcher, project Enhancing metacognition, agency and resilience in AI-mediated work
The Department of Philosophy, Contemporary History and Political Science at the University of Turku invites applications for a temporary position for a Senior Researcher or from 1 February 2026 to 30 ...
ats.talentadore.com
If you are going to procrastinate, it helps to do so at a university seminar about self-control. Thanks to @polariskoi.bsky.social for a stimulating discussion and @uofglasgow.bsky.social for hosting.
How should we target behavioral public policy interventions? Fresh off the press, in this paper, I and coauthors argue that in climate policy, targeting the local top 10% by wealth and income provides effectiveness, fairness and public acceptability. #nudge #bpp rdcu.be/eI4L1
Nudge the rich! The case for targeting the top 10% in behavioural climate policy
Humanities and Social Sciences Communications - Nudge the rich! The case for targeting the top 10% in behavioural climate policy
rdcu.be
Suomalaiset - esimerkki siitä, että "alemmatkin rodut" voivat menestyä! "FINLAND, the Hermit Nation of Europe. Mongolian in Origin, People Are Passive, Secretive and Unfathomable, Yet Their Love of Independence Promises Much for a Bright Future." The Sun (NY) 1.9.1918
Throwback to last Friday's symposium on challenging neuronormativity across disciplines. I got to talk about my work on the fundamentality of self-control for human & nonhuman! 🐒 🐺 agency, but most importantly, I got to meet a pack of scholars across disciplines working on ADHD and inclusion.
#writers how do you create enough separation & headspace for focused writing? I find it quite hard -- challenges: -working from the same laptop I use for work, leisure, etc -no specific writing space -> feeling like I'm in between tasks rather than focused How have you hacked this?
Which adjective is better for 'pertaining to agency'? A) Agentive B) Agential C) I hate both, and have a better idea
Oppiaineemme kesäharjoittelijat tekivät hienon videon filosofian opintoja aloittaville! Sopii kyllä pidemmällekin edenneille. Vaikka videossa on @utu.fi kiinteistöjä, sisältö taitaa toimia myös muissa yliopistoissa ;-) #opiskelu #filosofia www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tyba...
Filosofian opiskelu yliopistossa – opiskelutekniikoita & neuvoja!
YouTube video by Emmi Vahtera
youtube.com
Exciting news! 🔥 My book, Against Willpower: Self-Control, Agency, and Society is now under contract with @oxfordunipress.bsky.social ! Learn more about the book here: polariskoi.com/against-will...
There's still a few days to register! ⏳ What does the feeling of losing control tell us about being an agent? What can self-determination theory teach us about human agency? How does depression influence autonomous agency? These questions and many more are probed in our up-and-coming workshop 🧠
Polaris Koi@polariskoi.bsky.social · last yr.Academic friends: consider joining us for our workshop on Perspective on Agency and DIsadvantage! See website for information on how to register for online or on-site participation 🔥 sites.utu.fi/agencyprojec...
Are you in #Glasgow? My spouse is visiting the university for the fall semester. He’s looking for an affordable room. Let me know if you have any leads!
On train home after Method & Convergence 2025. I got so much food for my work! Slide is from @laukas.bsky.social nice ”PR talk” on synthetic phil… 🔥
Academic friends: consider joining us for our workshop on Perspective on Agency and DIsadvantage! See website for information on how to register for online or on-site participation 🔥 sites.utu.fi/agencyprojec...
Big news for us in the Ronroo team: we're part of the Health Incubator Helsinki batch of 2025! #startup #academia #impact #adhd
Health Incubator Helsinki welcomes its 6th batch of promising startups and teams - Health Incubator Helsinki
healthincubatorhelsinki.com