"Postdoctoral Researcher in Urban Mental Health"

All about this vacancy

What are you going to do

Working with colleagues in anthropology, communication science and sociology, you will co-design and then undertake an interpretative qualitative study into emerging processes of (dis)trust and identification as these relate to new technologies, such as a chatbot intervention. In-depth interviews will be central to the data collection. You will then analyse the data you collect (using interpretative approaches – such as phenomenology / grounded theory) and write high-quality scientific articles based on this analysis.

Trust and distrust in AI-based technologies is an important contemporary topic and, in cooperation with other UMH colleagues, you will also apply for further research money with the aim of extending and further developing this research. One goal here would be to carry out similar or related studies in cities in the majority world.

Besides this research, you will be teaching for 20% of your time in the Department of Sociology. We place great value upon quality teaching and are keen to give you experience and possibilities to develop your teaching, thesis supervision and pedagogic skills.

What do you have to offer

You have:

• A PhD degree in a social science, such as sociology, anthropology, communication science, urban studies, or psychology. The degree must be obtained/approved before 1 September 2025;
• A record (appropriate to career stage) of international publications that demonstrates the ability to conduct qualitative/ethnographic research;
• Expertise in doing interpretative qualitative (e.g. ethnographic) research in mental health/social care related contexts;
• A sound interest in social science literature on applicable topics for this project such as trust, urban identities, technology acceptance, and mental health;
• Affinity with and some experience in teaching;
• Good organizational and communication skills;
• Excellent proficiency in spoken and written English;
• Sufficient language abilities in Dutch to conduct research and preferably an awareness of urban youth vernaculars.

You are:

• Creative and innovative in your work;
• Intellectually curious and eager to learn in inter-disciplinary environments;
• Able and willing to work both independently and collaboratively, across different academic departments (anthropology, communication science, sociology).

What else do we offer you

We offer a temporary full-time contract of 38 hours per week (1.0 FTE) at the Department of Sociology for a period of two years with a probation period of two months. The intended starting date is 1 September 2025.

Your place at the UvA

You will work in this team

You will be part of an international and multi-disciplinary team of researchers who work together within the Centre for Urban Mental Health. You would be working closely with colleagues from anthropology, communication science and sociology, and you would spend part of your week working in the Sociology Department and part of your week in Communication Sciences. You would also be teaching in the Sociology Department. As a postdoc we expect you to take the initiative in developing this line of research but we will meet with you regularly to help steer and support the research.

The Centre for Urban Mental Health brings together researchers from disciplines across the university to identify new pathways to improve mental health in the city. For example, we investigate the relationship between early life stress, the gut microbiome and mental wellbeing, or the dynamics of ageism, loneliness and mental wellbeing for urban elderly.

About the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences

The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences (FMG) is the largest educational and research institution in the field of social and behavioural sciences in Europe. Here, we explore societal and human-centered issues, driven by scientific curiosity but also with an eye for current themes. For example, the impact of media and communication on individuals and society, healthcare challenges, global urbanization, human development, the role of political institutions, understanding the human mind, growing inequality, diversity issues, and changing social relationships.

In Europe and beyond, the FMG holds a leading position, thanks in part to its more than 1,300 staff members who contribute to education and research. Will you be one of them?

Read more about the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences

Important to know

Your application & contact

The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences strives for and puts conscious efforts into having a work and academic environment that is inclusive. We commit to providing the grounds for equal treatment and empowering you to become a full participating member of our academic community, regardless of your background, race, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability and/or age. We especially invite members from historically disadvantaged/under-represented groups to apply. If this vacancy speaks to you, but you are uncertain whether you meet all requirements, please do apply. Given the department’s commitment to diversity, we strongly encourage applications from all qualified candidates, and specifically from people with backgrounds underrepresented in academia.

Do you recognize yourself in the job profile? Then we look forward to receiving your application consisting in the following documents bundled in one single .pdf no later than Friday 20th June at 18:00 CET:

• Your letter of motivation for the position, where you should include some provisional ideas about the direction you would like to go in the research (2 pages max.);
• Your curriculum vitae (including a list of education and academic qualifications, earlier positions, research and teaching experience, a list of publications and conference presentations, and other relevant qualifications and experience);
• A scan of your PhD certificate;
• Contact information for two academic references (no letters of recommendation at this stage).

You can apply via the red button. Interviews will take place within the first 10 days of July.

Do you have any questions or do you require additional information? We are happy to provide an outline of the intended research to interested applicants. For any queries please contact:

Patrick Brown

p.r.brown@uva.nl