Pentti Hakkarainen (1944–2021) was a professor at the University of Oulu in Finland and Vytautas Magnus University in Lithuania, and the head of the research laboratory Play Lab “Silmu” at Oulu University and the research laboratory of play at Vytautas Magnus University. Hakkarainen taught early education, developmental teaching, and research methodology. From 1997 he was a professor of early education at Kajaani University Consortium, University of Oulu, and from 2000–2021 he was also the editor of the Journal of Russian and East European Psychology. Hakkarainen’s research interests included creative, developmental teaching and learning in preschools, schools and higher education, narrative learning and development in play and virtual environments.
