美国肯特大学发展心理学、心理语言学或自闭症研究博士后职位

美国肯特大学发展心理学、心理语言学或自闭症研究博士后职位

HSS-054-21 - Post-Doctoral Research Associate

University Of Kent

Post-Doctoral Research Associate School of Psychology Location: Canterbury

Salary: £34,804 to £39,152 per annum OR per annum pro rata if part time Grade: Grade 7 Post Type: Full Time Contract Type: Fixed Term - Full-time for 2 years 9 months OR 60% FTE for 3 years OR 50% FTE for 2 years 9 months Release Date: Friday 25 June 2021 Closing Date: 23.59 hours BST on Monday 26 July 2021 (unless otherwise stated) Interview Date: Tuesday 03 August 2021 Reference: HSS-054-21

We are seeking to hire a Post-Doctoral Research Associate (PDRA) with expertise in con­ducting research in developmental psychology, psycholinguistics or autism research for a project on the topic of conversation skills in typically-developing and autistic primary-school-aged children. The post is funded by a Leverhulme Trust grant awarded to Dr Kirsten Abbot-Smith (Kent), Dr Danielle Matthews (Sheffield), Dr Michael Forrester (Emeritus, Kent) and Professor Sue Leekam (Emeritus Chair of Autism, Cardiff), titled “The cognitive constraints on children's ability to manage a conversation topic”.

You will work on a series of experimental studies involving conversational interaction between him/herself and primary-school-aged children. The focus of these studies is on manipulating children's ability to respond appropriately (i.e. ‘contingently') whilst avoiding saying too much (monologuing), alongside the ability to switch topics when necessary whilst avoiding randomly switching topics where not appropriate. Our studies examine the role played by the child's topic interest, his/ her cognitive flexibility and his / her core language processing efficiency. Whilst the primary method of analysis is quantitative, one study may involve a qualitative analysis.

As PDRA you will:

Be responsible for co-designing and implementing the experiments to answer the research questions as outlined in the grant proposal

Recruit the child participants

Collect and manage/analyse all data

Write up research work for publication and disseminate the project's findings at relevant national and international conferences

To be successful in the role you will have/be:

A doctorate or equivalent qualification in psychology—preferably with a focus in developmental psychology, psycholinguistics or autism —or an allied subject (or an approved submission review by the interview date).

Excellent understanding of experimental design, child-friendly and autism- friendly methodologies and protocols.

An interest in how language is used for communication and social interaction.

Ability to be up-beat, engaging and flexible when holding conversations with children.

Experience of conducting and a good understanding of statistical analyses plus motivation to learn to use R-Studio.