Are you curious about exploring the impact of the online world on adolescent development? The SMART project (Social media, Misinformation, Adolescence, Risk Taking) is seeking a motivated and enthusiastic PhD candidate to develop innovative, multi-method studies. This is a four-year position, supervised by Dr. Neeltje Blankenstein, Dr. Ili Ma, and Dr. Anna van Duijvenvoorde. The position presents the opportunity to advance your career in social cognitive science with a developmental focus.
Project description In today's digital age, adolescents are heavily engaged with the online world through their smartphones. The SMART project addresses crucial challenges related to social media use, that may particularly impact adolescents: online risk-taking and exposure to misinformation. To explore these dynamics throughout adolescence, the SMART project aims to combine questionnaire design with the development of new behavioural experiments to understand adolescent’s online behaviour.
We are seeking a PhD candidate with an interest in experiment design and complex data analyses. The project involves cognitive computational modelling (including reinforcement learning), network modelling, and psychophysiological measures, such as eye tracking. This PhD position provides an excellent opportunity to cultivate a broad and advanced skill set.
The outcomes of this fundamental research project carry practical implications for enhancing youth’s resilience to misinformation and preventing online risk-taking. It is considered an asset if you have a passion for communicating scientific concepts and for engaging youth in research. Join our team in unravelling the intricacies of online behaviour and contributing to a smarter, safer digital experience for today's youth.
Key responsibilities: - Designing and carrying out questionnaire and lab experiments
- Recruiting participants and collecting data (participant age range 13-20 years old)
- Performing data analyses, such as latent variable analysis, network modelling and computational modelling of behavioural data
- Report results in scientific articles in international journals, culminating in a dissertation
- Presenting at national and international scientific conferences
- Supervise BSc and MSC thesis projects