Procedures are the default manner of protecting patients’ and clients’ rights. For instance, complaints procedures, safety procedures, tort procedures, administrative procedures, criminal procedures. Such procedures are understood as vital components of solutions to social problems and of the rule of law, as safeguards of equality, fairness and legitimacy. However, procedures fail to meet the needs of consumers, clients and citizens, cause antagonism and hamper solution-oriented thinking of stakeholders of and professionals involved in social problems.

A key area of research in this regard concerns so-called restorative justice after crime, which reveals formal criminal justice procedures to exclude victims’ interests, stigmatizes offenders and prevents communities from reaching constructive solutions. This signals a wider mismatch between the a priori perception underlying processes and stakeholders’ needs and interests. The current project aims to apply the lessons learned from other areas of legal procedure to the health care domain. It seeks to assess the way different procedures concerning situations when ‘things went wrong’ are experienced by participants, both patients/clients and professionals.

The study examines two health care settings, comparing formal procedures, with more client-focused approaches to social problems.

1. Procedures after an incident, calamity or medical error in health care organizations.
2. Procedures to respond to clients’ complaints in Dutch youth care organization.

You are an outstanding student, who holds a Master’s degree in a relevant area of social and legal sciences, for instance Victimology, criminology or legal psychology. Candidates who are due to graduate before September 2018 are also welcome to apply. Given the project’s highly interdisciplinary nature, demonstrated ability to combine disciplines or transcend disciplinary boundaries is an important competence.

In addition, you should have:

• An multidisciplinary and explorative mind-set;
• Strong analytical skills and knowledge of empirical research methods. Experience with empirical research methods (eg, empirical research and dataset design in a master thesis or a project) would be an asset (otherwise, willingness to acquire such knowledge rapidly);
• Have an active knowledge of relevant software packages, such as MAXGDA, Atlas-Ti, R or SPSS;
• Excellent command of Dutch (expected to be fluent) and English, both written and spoken;
• Ambition to perform top-level research and occasionally teach, ability to work autonomously and within a team, and interest in interacting and delivering within a group in a multidisciplinary, international environment;.

Fixed-term contract: 38 months.

Tilburg University is rated among the top of Dutch employers and has excellent terms of employment. The total duration of the PhD trajectory is three years and two months (38 months). The candidate will initially be appointed for a fixed period of 16 months. After 12 months, an evaluation will take place. If the performance evaluation is positive, the contract will be extended for the remaining period of 22 months. Selected candidates will be ranked in the Dutch university employment system (UFO). The starting gross salary is € 2,222,- per month (for a full-time appointment) and will raise every 12 months to a maximum of € 2,840,- based on the PhD salary scale of the Collective Labour Agreement (CAO) Dutch Universities.

Researchers from outside the Netherlands may qualify for a tax-free allowance equal to 30% of their taxable salary. The university will apply for such an allowance on their behalf. The university offers very good fringe benefits (it is one of the best non-profit employers in the Netherlands), such as an options model for terms and conditions of employment and excellent reimbursement of moving expenses.

Tilburg Law School (TLS) staat voor kwaliteit, met brede, internationale opleidingen en innovatief onderzoek. Het onderzoek van Tilburg Law School vindt plaats in een organisatie waar ruimte is voor diversiteit. De Tilburg Graduate Law School is verantwoordelijk voor de opleiding en begeleiding van promovendi en onderzoeksmasterstudenten. De inspirerende en open cultuur maakt het werken plezierig.

Tilburg Law School