Key takeaways

Extended Reality (XR) interventions
presents the potential for new ways of thinking about health, environmental awareness, disaster preparedness, and social change related problems. XR interventions make use of embodied experiences to promote long-term prosocial behavior, often through role-playing techniques that enhance empathy skills. However, we still have much to learn about the cognitive mechanisms at play in these experiences.

We are seeking a motivated and highly skilled PhD researcher to join our team and contribute to this exciting research project. The primary objective of this project is to investigate how memory, conscious experience, and sensory awareness of users are influenced by the roles they adopt in XR interventions. By examining the interplay between embodiment, immersion, and empathy, the aim of this project is to uncover the cognitive processes underlying embodied experiences and their impact on prosocial behavior.

Key Research Objectives:

• Explore the cognitive and behavioral mechanisms underlying role-induced experiences in XR interventions.
• Investigate the impact of perspective-taking on cognitive processes within social and environmental contexts.
• Analyze the role of sensory elements in shaping immersion and presence in XR interventions.

Responsibilities:

• Conduct empirical research using XR technologies and sensors to examine role-induced cognitive and behavioral mechanisms.
• Collaborate with interdisciplinary teams to design and implement experiments.
• Analyze data and contribute to the development of theories and models.
• Disseminate research findings through publications and presentations.
• Participate in the academic activities of the research group such as workshops, seminars and scientific interest groups.

The PhD candidate will receive guidance from a multidisciplinary supervisory team with extensive experience in various domains. Dr. Funda Yildirim will serve as the primary supervisor, Dr. Stéphanie van den Berg as the promoter, and Dr. Marcello A. Gómez-Maureira as the co-supervisor.

The successful applicant will join the Cognition, Data and Education (CoDE) section of the Learning, Data analytics and Technology (LDT) Department at the Faculty of Behavioural Management and Social Sciences

We welcome applicants from diverse backgrounds and are committed to creating an inclusive and respectful working environment. We encourage candidates of all genders, ethnicities, and backgrounds to apply.