Background and experience
Tirill Fjellhaugen holds a PhD in developmental psychology from Aarhus University in Denmark, where she was affiliated with the Center on Autobiographical Memory Research. Her research focuses on the development of autobiographical memory, future thinking, narrative identity, and mental health in children and adolescents. A recurring question in her work is how people make meaning of what they have experienced, and how these stories shape who they become, what they hope for, and how they envision the future.
Methodologically, she works in particular with longitudinal designs, narrative measures and development, and the translation and validation of questionnaires. During the coronavirus pandemic, she examined how children and adolescents remembered the lockdowns, and how these memories related to mental health and wellbeing. Her research shows that the way young people remember difficult periods can influence how they experience themselves and their future.
Tirill currently collaborates with colleagues at the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark. There she conducts research on mental health challenges among adolescents, with a particular emphasis on psychosis and ADHD.
In addition, she leads PULS(E) – Psychology University Students' Longitudinal Study of Emergence – a longitudinal research project at the University of Agder that follows psychology students throughout their studies and into their first years as qualified psychologists. The project examines how academic, personal, and social development are interconnected over time, with a particular emphasis on professional identity, self-understanding, and wellbeing.
Educational background
PhD in Developmental Psychology | Center on Autobiographical Memory Research (CON AMORE) | Aarhus University, Denmark
Master of Science (MSc) in Psychology (Psychologist) | Aarhus University, Denmark
Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Psychology | Aarhus University, Denmark
Areas of responsibility
Tirill joined the University of Agder in August 2025 as part of the academic community in psychology. Her main responsibilities include research and teaching in developmental psychology, as well as contributing to the further development of psychology as a discipline at UiA. She is course coordinator for the following courses in the psychology programme: 1) Introduction to Psychology: Philosophy of Science, Basic Disciplines, and Clinical Psychology; 2) Personality, Social, and Developmental Psychology; 3) Cognitive Psychology; and 4) Advanced Developmental Psychology and Practice in a Life-Span Perspective.
Teaching
Tirill has extensive experience in teaching, supervision, and training across academic and clinical settings at undergraduate, graduate, and professional levels. Her teaching and supervision activities have included:
University courses: Lecturing and course leadership in developmental psychology, research methods, and autobiographical memory. This includes structuring lectures, leading seminars, and overseeing written assignments and exams.
Supervision: Guidance and supervision of bachelor’s and master’s projects.
Clinical teaching and training: Instruction of clinical staff in the use of measurement-based treatment and assessment tools such as PANSS-6 and SNAPSI for children and adolescents with psychosis, as well as training in coding patient narratives and converting qualitative data into quantitative measures.
Research skills training: Leadership and coordination of coding teams for research on children’s and adolescents’ memories and future projections, including training research assistants in standardized coding procedures.
Professional development: Participation in courses on pedagogical methods, scientific communication, and ethics in research with children, aimed at strengthening teaching skills and research supervision.
Across her teaching, Tirill emphasizes integrating current research with practice, fostering critical thinking, and supporting students and staff in developing both academic and professional competencies.
Research
In her doctoral work, Tirill examined the difference between spontaneous memories and strategic recall in preschool children, using both experimental designs and diary studies. The findings from this research are particularly relevant to forensic psychology, as they provide insight into how young children remember and communicate past experiences.
In recent years, her research has primarily focused on school-age children and adolescents. Her interest in adolescent mental health was further strengthened during the coronavirus pandemic, when she examined how the pandemic and the lockdowns affected young people's autobiographical memory, future thinking, and mental health. This research contributes to a better understanding of how demanding life events can affect memory and mental health in adolescents, and sheds light on both vulnerability and protective factors that influence coping.
Tirill's current research is primarily developmental in orientation and addresses how memory, future thinking, and narrative identity relate to mental health, hope, and wellbeing across adolescence and early adulthood. She leads PULS(E) – Psychology University Students' Longitudinal Study of Emergence – a longitudinal project at the University of Agder that follows psychology students throughout their studies and examines how academic, personal, and social development unfold over time, with a particular emphasis on professional identity, self-understanding, and mental health.
Building on this work, she is further developing the Resilient Futures Memory Model, a framework linking children's and adolescents' experiences of societal disruptions to memory, imagined futures, and long-term adaptation, as well as a study of autobiographical memory, future projection, and functioning in adolescents with ADHD.
In addition, she takes part in clinical research collaborations within child and adolescent psychiatry, with projects on patient-controlled admissions, electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in adolescent patients, and validation of the PANSS-6 scale for monitoring psychotic symptoms over time. This part of her work constitutes a smaller but clinically relevant complement to her developmental research profile.
Through her research, Tirill has led several projects and collaborated with schools, hospitals, and clinics. She regularly communicates research findings through the media, lectures, and public engagement events. Her work connects research-based knowledge with the challenges young people face in everyday life, particularly during periods marked by stress and transition.