Dr. Mika Tilman

Mika Manninen (Tilman) is an Assistant Professor of Physical Education in the School of Health and Human Performance, Faculty of Science and Health, at Dublin City University, where he has worked since July 2019. He received his BSc and MSc in Physical Education from the University of Jyväskylä, Finland, in 2012 and 2014, respectively. After completing his master's degree, he worked for two years as a Physical Education and Health Science teacher in two high schools in Helsinki, Finland. In 2016, he began doctoral studies as a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Georgia focusing on Physical Education and Exercise Psychology. His doctoral work, completed in May 2019, examined Self-Determination Theory-based need-supportive instructional strategies and their effects on student motivation, emotion, and skill performance.

Since joining DCU, Mika has published approximately 25 peer-reviewed articles, the majority as first or senior author, spanning experimental studies, intervention research, and meta-analyses. His broad research programme is organised around four strands: physical activity interventions grounded in motivational theory, video-based instructional approaches to physical education, the consequences of competition in youth sport and PE, and the effect of exercise on mood. He maintains an active international collaboration with researcher in Finland and USA. Methodologically, his work is characterised by a commitment to pre-registration, open science practices, validated instrumentation, and rigorous meta-analytic and multilevel statistical approaches.

Beyond research, Mika has taken on significant programme leadership and mentoring roles at DCU, including Programme Chair, Teaching and Learning Convenor, and School Placement Coordinator, and has supervised one PhD student to completion. 

Mika continues to pursue an active, varied relationship with physical activity himself -- early passions for basketball and cross-country skiing have given way to an enthusiasm for picking up new skills, from musical instruments to skateboarding. Alongside his roles as athlete, teacher, and researcher, he has coached and instructed basketball, gymnastics, and circus for many years.