Radboud University Nijmegen Faculty of Social Sciences
Nijmegen, (Gelderland), 40 hours per week
Job description
The division of Social and Cultural Psychology is looking for a PhD student in the area of culture and cognition. The PhD project is directed at investigating the possible neurocognitive basis of religion, in particular the suggested role of (hyper)active agency detection (tendency to infer the presence of agents or intentionality) and enhanced memory for counterintuitive information (e.g. stories describing superhuman abilities) as possible precursors of religious thoughts and beliefs. The PhD student will be conducting experiments to investigate human memory for religious and counterintuitive information using a variety of experimental techniques (memory recall, skin conductance, ERPs). Furthermore, he/she will be involved in designing new experimental paradigms to investigate the neurocognitive mechanisms supporting (defective or enhanced) agency detection in neuropsychological patients (e.g. patients from the autistic spectrum or patients with temporal lobe epilepsy) and the development of agency detection in infancy (using eye movement recordings). The PhD student will participate in the graduate programme of the Behavioural Science Institute, present and publish findings at international conferences and peer reviewed quality journals, and combine scientific findings in a thesis manuscript.
Requirements
Required education/skills:University Graduate
Candidates must have a Master’s degree in Cognitive Psychology, Cognitive Neuroscience, Social Psychology, Cultural Psychology, or a related field, and show a sincere interest in the cognitive science of religion. Furthermore, background and experience in conducting psychological experiments (behavioural, neuropsychological, and/or neuroimaging) and enrolment in a Research Master’s programme (Behavioural Science or Cognitive Neuroscience or related) are considered advantages. Candidates need to be proficient in English and have excellent writing ability.
Job type: Research / Advising
Workfield(s):
- Research trainees, non-tenured lecturers, researchers(Scientific discipline: Behaviour and Society)
Organization
Radboud University Nijmegen
Faculty of Social Sciences
Strategically located in Europe, Radboud University Nijmegen is one of the leading academic communities in the Netherlands. A place with a personal touch, where top-flight education and research take place on a beautiful green campus in modern buildings with state-of-art facilities.
The vacant position is within the Social and Cultural Psychology (SCP) division of Radboud University Nijmegen. The psychological study of religion has a long history in this division and is directed at understanding the basic cognitive processes that support religious and nonreligious behaviour and experience. The PhD student will participate in the Social Cognition programme of the BSI (Behavioural Science Institute) research school which provides a positive and dynamic environment for fundamental research on social and cultural processes underlying human cognition and behaviour. The BSI is equipped with extensive state-of-the-art lab facilities for, for example, eye tracking, EEG measurements, GSR recording, and behavioural measurements. The current project is part of a larger initiative to support neurocognitive research on religious experience and consciousness and has well-established university-wide connections with researchers at other institutes (Nijmegen Institute for Cognition and Information; F.C. Donders Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging; Mind-Brain and Mindfulness Meditation Research Team).
Date of entry: 16/05/2008
Conditions of employment
Maximum salary amount in Euro's a month 2.558
Employment basis: Temporary for specified period
Duration of the contract:
Maximum hours per week: 40
Additional conditions of employment:
The candidate will be appointed as a PhD student (1.0 FTE) for a period of four years. The candidate’s performance will be evaluated after 18 months. If the evaluation is positive, the contract will be extended by 2½ years. Salary: PhD scale.
Additional Information
Additional information about the vacancy can be obtained from:
dr. Hein van Schie
Telephone number: 31(0)24-3612575
E-mail address: h.vanschie@psych.ru.nl
Or prof. dr. Daniël Wigboldus
Telephone number: 31(0)24-3610084
E-mail address: d.wigboldus@psych.ru.nl
Or additional information can be obtained through one of the following links:
You can apply for this job before 15-06-2008 (dd-mm-yyyy) by sending your application to:
Faculteit der Sociale Wetenschappen
Faculty of Social Sciences/P en O
Postbus 9104, 6500 HE NIJMEGEN
E-mail: vacancies@socsci.ru.nl
When applying for this job always mention the vacancynumber 24.24.08.
Job description
The division of Social and Cultural Psychology is looking for a PhD student in the area of culture and cognition. The PhD project is directed at investigating the possible neurocognitive basis of religion, in particular the suggested role of (hyper)active agency detection (tendency to infer the presence of agents or intentionality) and enhanced memory for counterintuitive information (e.g. stories describing superhuman abilities) as possible precursors of religious thoughts and beliefs. The PhD student will be conducting experiments to investigate human memory for religious and counterintuitive information using a variety of experimental techniques (memory recall, skin conductance, ERPs). Furthermore, he/she will be involved in designing new experimental paradigms to investigate the neurocognitive mechanisms supporting (defective or enhanced) agency detection in neuropsychological patients (e.g. patients from the autistic spectrum or patients with temporal lobe epilepsy) and the development of agency detection in infancy (using eye movement recordings). The PhD student will participate in the graduate programme of the Behavioural Science Institute, present and publish findings at international conferences and peer reviewed quality journals, and combine scientific findings in a thesis manuscript.
Requirements
Required education/skills:University Graduate
Candidates must have a Master’s degree in Cognitive Psychology, Cognitive Neuroscience, Social Psychology, Cultural Psychology, or a related field, and show a sincere interest in the cognitive science of religion. Furthermore, background and experience in conducting psychological experiments (behavioural, neuropsychological, and/or neuroimaging) and enrolment in a Research Master’s programme (Behavioural Science or Cognitive Neuroscience or related) are considered advantages. Candidates need to be proficient in English and have excellent writing ability.
Job type: Research / Advising
Workfield(s):
- Research trainees, non-tenured lecturers, researchers(Scientific discipline: Behaviour and Society)
Organization
Radboud University Nijmegen
Faculty of Social Sciences
Strategically located in Europe, Radboud University Nijmegen is one of the leading academic communities in the Netherlands. A place with a personal touch, where top-flight education and research take place on a beautiful green campus in modern buildings with state-of-art facilities.
The vacant position is within the Social and Cultural Psychology (SCP) division of Radboud University Nijmegen. The psychological study of religion has a long history in this division and is directed at understanding the basic cognitive processes that support religious and nonreligious behaviour and experience. The PhD student will participate in the Social Cognition programme of the BSI (Behavioural Science Institute) research school which provides a positive and dynamic environment for fundamental research on social and cultural processes underlying human cognition and behaviour. The BSI is equipped with extensive state-of-the-art lab facilities for, for example, eye tracking, EEG measurements, GSR recording, and behavioural measurements. The current project is part of a larger initiative to support neurocognitive research on religious experience and consciousness and has well-established university-wide connections with researchers at other institutes (Nijmegen Institute for Cognition and Information; F.C. Donders Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging; Mind-Brain and Mindfulness Meditation Research Team).
Date of entry: 16/05/2008
Conditions of employment
Maximum salary amount in Euro's a month 2.558
Employment basis: Temporary for specified period
Duration of the contract:
Maximum hours per week: 40
Additional conditions of employment:
The candidate will be appointed as a PhD student (1.0 FTE) for a period of four years. The candidate’s performance will be evaluated after 18 months. If the evaluation is positive, the contract will be extended by 2½ years. Salary: PhD scale.
Additional Information
Additional information about the vacancy can be obtained from:
dr. Hein van Schie
Telephone number: 31(0)24-3612575
E-mail address: h.vanschie@psych.ru.nl
Or prof. dr. Daniël Wigboldus
Telephone number: 31(0)24-3610084
E-mail address: d.wigboldus@psych.ru.nl
Or additional information can be obtained through one of the following links:
- About the organization (http://www.ru.nl)
- About the department (http://www.ru.nl/fsw)
- About the function (http://www.ru.nl/fsw)
- Radboud University Nijmegen (http://www.ru.nl)
You can apply for this job before 15-06-2008 (dd-mm-yyyy) by sending your application to:
Faculteit der Sociale Wetenschappen
Faculty of Social Sciences/P en O
Postbus 9104, 6500 HE NIJMEGEN
E-mail: vacancies@socsci.ru.nl
When applying for this job always mention the vacancynumber 24.24.08.
