Two PhD Positions in Developmental Psychology/Affective Science

Are you intrigued by how distinct emotions emerge in the first years of life? Do you want to work with young children in naturalistic settings using cutting-edge methods to study emotions? Join us as a PhD candidate at the University of Amsterdam. You will be part of the ERC Starting Grant project EMODEV: The emergence of distinct emotions in human development at the University of Amsterdam.

Two PhD candidates
We are seeking two motivated PhD candidates with a strong interest in emotional development in early childhood. Together with a team of postdoctoral researchers and supervisors, you will investigate when, how, and why distinct emotions, such as awe, interest, envy, resentment, excitement, and schadenfreude emerge in human development.

The project will answer fundamental questions about human emotional development: How are specific emotions expressed in early development? Do these emotions motivate young children’s behaviours? Which cognitive skills are necessary for these emotions to develop? How do caregivers’ behaviors influence young children’s emotions?

For example, what elicits excitement, and does this emotion facilitate risk taking? When do children start showing awe, and does it help them connect to others? Are cognitive skills, such as language or sense of fairness, necessary for resentment to occur? Do caregivers’ behaviors (e.g., emotional reactions and mentalizing) influence the development of these emotions?

The PhD candidates will develop new, developmentally appropriate games and tasks to induce emotions in naturalistic settings in children aged nine months to five years. The project involves the use of advanced multimodal methods to map emotions through nonverbal facial expressions, vocalizations, body posture and movements, and physiological activity (e.g., blushing, goosebumps).

What you are going to do
PhD candidate 1 will experimentally investigate the causes and consequences of a range of distinct emotions in early development. This project will be conducted both inside and outside of the lab (e.g., indoor playgrounds, theaters).

PhD candidate 1 will:

• Develop novel games and tasks to elicit a range of emotions in young children (together with PhD candidate 2)
• Design and conduct experimental studies inside the lab and in naturalistic settings, using multimodal methods to measure emotions
• Process data and conduct a range of advanced statistical analyses (including computational methods to analyse high-dimensional behavioural and physiological data)
• Write high-quality scientific articles together with other project members and present at conferences

PhD candidate 2 will examine the developmental timing and cognitive prerequisites for the emergence of a range of emotions, as well as parental factors that drive their change in early development. This project will use longitudinal and experimental designs in the context of home visits.

PhD candidate 2 will:

• Develop novel games and tasks to elicit a range of emotions in young children (together with PhD candidate 1)
• Design and conduct longitudinal and experimental studies to examine cognitive prerequisites and caregivers’ influences on children’s emerging emotions during home visits
• Process data and conduct a range of advanced statistical analyses (e.g., multilevel modelling, structural equation modelling)
• Write high-quality scientific articles together with other project members and present at conferences

As well as being hosted in the supportive research atmosphere of the Research Institute of Child Development and Education at the University of Amsterdam, the PhD candidates will have the opportunity to establish research connections with international collaborators.

The PhD candidates will conduct their research under the supervision of Dr Milica Nikolic at the University of Amsterdam and will be part of her research group as part of Dr Nikolic’s ERC-funded project EMODEV: The emergence of distinct emotions in human development. Dr Nikolic’s research group is part of Developmental Psychopathology group at the Research Institute of Child Development and Education. The PhD projects will be co-supervised by Dr Disa Sauter at the University of Oxford.

The position includes allowances for research expenses and travel and subsistence costs toward project-specific travel, including international conferences. It also offers an opportunity to gain experience in teaching, in particular supervising bachelor’s and master’s theses.

What do you have to offer
You are:

• Curious and eager to learn
• Enthusiastic about engaging with young children and their caregivers
• Motivated to share your knowledge with academic and non-academic audiences
• Strongly committed to methodological rigor and scientific integrity

You have:

• (or are about to obtain) a (Research) Master’s degree in Psychology, Child Development, Cognitive Science, or related field
• A general interest in and understanding of theories and empirical research on early child development and/or emotions
• Some experience with designing, conducting, and analyzing quantitative research (experience conducting research with young children is advantageous)
• Good programming skills (in R, Python, or similar)
• Excellent written and spoken English (including the ability to write, present, and discuss research findings, and communicate effectively in English in daily work)
• Good research project management skills, including the ability to plan and organize research tasks and keep projects on schedule
• Experience with lab or field studies and familiarity with behavioural observations or physiological measures is advantageous.
• In addition, for PhD position 2, good command of Dutch language or willingness to learn it will be considered advantageous

What else do we offer you
The appointment concerns temporary employment of 34.2 hours per week (0.9 fte) for a period of 4 years. The initial employment is for one year. Following a positive assessment and barring altered circumstances, this term will be extended by three years, which should result in the conferral of a doctorate.

We will put together a graduate school curriculum that includes opportunities to attend training courses and both national and international events. You will also do a limited amount of teaching (around 10% of your time) in the form of supervision of BA and MA theses.

You will work here
The Research Institute of Child Development and Education (RICDE) is part of the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences at the University of Amsterdam. Dedicated to advancing knowledge on the development, learning, and well-being of children, the institute integrates cutting-edge research with real-world applications to impact education and care. We offer a dynamic environment paired with an informal and supportive atmosphere. The institute is situated centrally in Amsterdam, an international city consistently ranked as one of the world’s top places to live. Our faculty offers excellent facilities for undertaking research in a broad range of areas, including EEG, ERP, TMS, fMRI, social observations labs, eye-tracker, and physiological measurement. The Family lab of the faculty comprises two large video studios for observing and filming the behaviour of children and family interaction.

The intended starting date is 1 October 2026, but there is some flexibility.

If you recognize yourself in this profile and are interested in the role, we look forward to receiving your motivation letter (max. two pages, indicating for which position you are applying for, why you are interested in this position, your relevant research background and skills, and your fit with the project) and CV. You can apply via the red button until May 3, 2026. Online interviews for shortlisted candidates will take place in the second half of May or at the beginning of June.

For questions about the vacancy, you can contact Dr Milica Nikolic (m.nikolic@uva.nl). Please quote “Inquiry PhD EMODEV Project” in the subject line.