PhD Position: Simulation & Virtual Field Experiments for Democratic Citizenship

Are you eager to push the boundaries of virtual field experiments? Interested in joining an international team exploring how (social) media impacts democracy? If you want to tackle these challenges, please apply at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.

Jouw functie

Your research will be part of “WHAT-IF”, a European research project aimed at creating a ‘digital twin’ of the (social) media environment, in order to test possible interventions at the individual and/or societal level. The empirical core of the project is formed by a combination of individual level data donation of (social) media usage, which will be used to train and validate a LLM-based simulation. Then, this will be used to examine the role of misinformation and hate speech, among others, as well as develop solutions to counter the negative effects of these phenomena. The project also explicitly considers the legal and ethical considerations of datafying and simulating individual media usage.

Your main role in the project will be assisting in the development of the methodology and software for running virtual field experiments using the WHAT-IF simulation. This involves turning the simulated interactions into an immersive and user-friendly interface that can be used to program and run the experiments. You will lead one of the experimental studies and collaborate on the others, answering questions on the role of media diets and its effects on democratic outcomes. Additionally, you can be involved in improving the data donation infrastructure, help with the development and validation of the simulation, and/or help with the panels in 4 countries to engage a strong citizen perspective in the entire research process. Together with your supervisors, you will plan this research, execute it, and publish it in leading international journals.

Please feel free to email Wouter van Atteveldt (wouter.van.atteveldt@vu.nl

) for more information on the project or to receive a summary of the project description.

Jouw profiel

• Completed (Research) Master degree in Political or Computational Communication Science or a related discipline
• Strong interest in (social) media usage and its effects on democratic citizenship
• Strong computational background (Python, R and/or simulation or front-end development
• Knowledge of and experience with empirical (field or experimental) studies and research designs
• Good cross-disciplinary team collaboration and oral and written communication skills
• Interest in working in an interdisciplinary and international project in collaboration with experts in computational social science, political science, communication science, simulations and ethics.

Wat bieden wij

A challenging position in a socially involved and highly interdisciplinary organization. The job profile is based on the university job ranking system and is vacant for 1 FTE. We offer you:

• a salary of € 2.872,00 (PhD) and maximum € 3.670,00 (PhD) gross per month in the fourth year, for a full-time employment
• an employment contract of initially 1 year. After a satisfactory evaluation of the initial appointment, the contract will be extended for a total duration of 4 years.

We also offer you attractive fringe benefits and arrangements, such as:

• A full-time 38-hour working week comes with a holiday leave entitlement of 232 hours per year. If you choose to work 40 hours, you have 96 extra holiday leave hours on an annual basis. For part-timers, this is calculated pro rata.
• 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus
• contribution to commuting expenses
• optional model for designing a personalized benefits package
• a wide range of sports facilities which staff may use at a modest charge

Over ons

About the project

The research is embedded in the department of Communication Science (Department Communication Science) and the Political & Computational Communication Research Group. Supervisors are Prof. dr. Wouter van Atteveldt, dr. Mariken van der Velden, and dr. Sílvia Majó-Vázquez. They are international key players in the field of political and computational communication science and have won several prestigious prizes honouring their work. You will also collaborate with many researchers across 10 European countries..

Faculty of Social Sciences

At the Faculty of Social Sciences we examine the major social issues facing us today from a variety of critical perspectives. We combine sociology, anthropology, political science, communication science, administration and organisation. Because there aren’t any ready-made solutions to the complex social issues of today. They demand a multidisciplinary approach. Working together with others helps you expand your mind, come to new ways of understanding and devise creative solutions.

Are you interested in joining Social Sciences? That means working with a team of colleagues from different disciplines in an inspiring work and study climate. Enjoy working in a professional organisation with an informal atmosphere, where we give you space for personal development. FSS employs over 350 staff members and enrols around 3,000 students.

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam stands for values-driven education and research. We are open-minded experts with the ability to think freely - a broader mind. Maintaining an entrepreneurial perspective and concentrating on diversity, significance and humanity, we work on sustainable solutions with social impact. By joining forces, across the boundaries of disciplines, we work towards a better world for people and planet. Together we create a safe and respectful working and study climate, and an inspiring environment for education and research.

We are located on one physical campus, in the heart of Amsterdam's Zuidas business district, with excellent location and accessibility. Over 6,150 staff work at the VU and over 31,000 students attend academic education.

Diversity

Diversity is the driving force of VU Amsterdam. VU wants to be accessible and receptive to diversity in disciplines, cultures, ideas, nationalities, beliefs, preferences and worldviews. We believe that trust, respect, interest and differences lead to new insights and innovation, to sharpness and clarity, to excellence and a broader understanding.

We stand for an inclusive community and believe that diversity and internationalisation contribute to the quality of education, research and our services.

Therefore, we are always searching for people whose backgrounds and experience contribute to the diversity of the VU community.