Head of an independent junior research group in communication science (full-time position)

Founded in 1818, the University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart, Germany, is a specialized
university with three faculties: Business, Economics and Social Sciences (W), Agricultural Sciences (A), and Natural Sciences (N). The University of Hohenheim has strong and unique programs in communication science and enables students and researchers to find solutions for many global challenges. To this end, the university also places great importance on building and maintaining an international network. Digital transformation is both a guiding principle and a research focus for the entire university, as reflected, for instance, in the establishment of the interdisciplinary Computational Science Lab and a university-wide digital transformation
strategy.

The research group is funded by the Gips-Schüle Foundation as part of the program “Gips-Schüle: Funding Excellence in Hohenheim”.

Supporting excellent early career researchers in achieving early independence in research and teaching is an important issue for the university. Therefore, we are seeking to fill the position of the

Head of an independent junior research group in communication science (full-time position)

“Understanding Change in Media Use and Communication” at the University of Hohenheim’s Institute of Communication, starting February 1st, 2023

The research group’s goal
The research group works at the intersection of communication science, statistics and psychology and strives to answer the question of how individual behavior changes over time and how these changes are related to media use. The group’s initial goal will be to identify relevant theoretical debates regarding change in communication science. Then, the group will review and evaluate common methods of measuring and statistically modeling change in the discipline of communication science. Based on these findings, the research group will analyze how media use affects and interacts with individuals’ cognitions, attitudes, and behavior over
time and will assess potential growth and causality. Very likely, the group will apply the methods of secondary analysis and/or meta-analysis, the latter ideally combined with semi-automated content analyses. Analyzing science communication around the neuropsychology of change and active science communication will be additional goals. The research group’s head will work autonomously and will be on a peer level with tenure-track professors at the University of Hohenheim.

Your core tasks
As the research group’s head, you will establish your own research group in an innovative research environment. You will work independently in research and teaching with no direct supervision, but with strong support from the Institute of Communication. With your team, you will contribute by

• examining whether and how change in media use and communication is related to individual change using rigorous research methods and statistical models,
• publishing research results in top-tier international journals,
• establishing and managing your own junior research group,
• acquiring third-party funds,
• teaching classes in Communication Science (two contact hours per week),
• supervising bachelor’s/master’s students and doctoral candidates,
• engaging in science communication via social media and interviews with the press,
• qualifying for your next steps in academia.

Your profile
We are looking for an ambitious, creative early career researcher who enjoys interdisciplinary collaboration. In addition, you should have the following qualifications:

• doctorate of outstanding quality in communication science, social sciences,psychology or related fields,
• university degree,
• fluency in advanced statistical methods,
• excellent theoretical and empirical knowledge in your field, as evident from relevant publications,
• teaching aptitude,
• interest and/or experience in international research collaboration (stays abroad, research cooperation partnerships), and,
• joy in working with people and managing a team.

What we offer
With your group, you will be integrated into the Institute of Communication and will have

• guaranteed budget that you can use, for example, to employ one doctoral student (50% full-time equivalent) and for ongoing expenses,
• access to an attractive research infrastructure in our labs (PC lab for individual and group experiments with 18 participants; eye movement lab for mobile and stationary purposes; real-time-response measurement for 100 participants),
• access to the interdisciplinary Hohenheim Computational Science Lab,
• the Institute of Communication’s and the Faculty’s full support for your next steps in academia,
• access to individual career support by the Career Service Dept. with coaching,mentoring, and workshops to support you on your path according to your needs; faculty-wide professional development courses on teaching and discipline-specific topics to help you complete your qualification profile,
• access to workplace health promotion and university sports courses, and,
• eligibility for subsidized public transportation in the form of a job ticket.

Terms
Salary will be commensurate with TV-L EG 14 (German salary scheme). The period of
employment is limited to five years, conditional on a positive evaluation after three years.
The research group’s head will have to teach one course per semester (i.e. two contact hours per semester).
The University of Hohenheim seeks to increase the proportion of women in research and teaching, and strongly encourages qualified female candidates to apply. With equal qualifications, preference will be given to candidates with disabilities.

Please apply with a curriculum vitae referring (but not limited) to your academic degrees and certificates, statement of your research interests, list of publications, list of third-party-funded projects, courses taught and teaching evaluations. Please submit your application materials in a single pdf document.

We are looking forward to your application!
We look forward to receiving your electronic application by 15 September 2022 to Prof. Dr. Sabine Trepte (sabine.trepte@uni-hohenheim.de). Pls. also direct your inquiries to Sabine Trepte.