A two-year postdoc position in the project Aesthetic Atmospheres. Investigations in Phenomenological Psychology, University of Copenhagen

The Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Copenhagen (UCPH), invites candidates to apply for a two-year postdoctoral position in the project Aesthetic Atmospheres from 1 February 2025 to 31 January 2027. The project is funded by the Velux Foundation.

The starting date is 1 February 2025, or as soon as possible thereafter.

Introduction
The project, “Aesthetic atmosphere. An investigation in Phenomenological Psychology,” is located at Center for Phenomenological Psychology and Aesthetics at the Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen. The overarching aim of the project is to show how atmospheres, while often vague and fluctuating, influence our affective life. In the postdoctoral subproject, experiences with architecture will form the empirical basis for the study. The research questions are: 1) How are atmospheres experienced in relation to architecture? 2) What are the essential characteristics of the experience of architectural atmospheres? 3) What are the momentary versus lasting influences of experiencing architectural atmospheres? The empirical part of the subproject will be based on qualitative interviews in Denmark. The analyses of the empirical material should be grounded in the descriptive method of phenomenological psychology developed by Amadeo Giorgi to obtain an overview of atmospheric experiences as well as capturing their fine-grained details. This approach must be supplemented with the micro-phenomenological method developed by Claire Petitmengin. The overarching theoretical framework is phenomenological psychology, combined with phenomenological theory on aesthetics, architecture, and subjectivity.

The full project description can be obtained from [email protected] upon request. We recommend that you read the full project description before submitting your application.

See also psy.ku.dk for a detailed description of the department profile. We are located in the center of Copenhagen. A high degree of presence at the workplace is expected.

Duties and Responsibilities
The successful candidate will be working closely with the PI and other collaborators, investigating how architectural atmospheres influence our affective life. It requires deep theoretical insight and experience with empirical research. The postdoc will conduct in-depth phenomenological interviews in Denmark, developing theoretical models that explain the results, as well as manuscript preparation and publication. This process will include discussions with architects, psychologists, and phenomenologists. Postdocs at the department typically also have some teaching obligations, and approximately 20% of the time will be reserved for teaching.

Your Competencies and Opportunities

• Ph.D. in phenomenological psychology or a closely related field.
• theoretical and empirical experience with phenomenological psychology and aesthetics, including phenomenological interviewing techniques and analysis. Preferably some peer-reviewed publications within these fields.
• be able to conduct independent research, to think critically and creatively, and carry out research in a structured manner.
• preferably have experience with communicating your research results to external target groups.
• be a skilled communicator in both written and oral English. Oral Danish skills are also necessary since the interviews will be conducted in Denmark.

Strategy of the Faculty of the Social Sciences
The Department of Psychology is part of the Faculty of the Social Sciences. The Faculty is a successful academic community that strives to put knowledge into action by:

• Engaging partners in the co-creation of knowledge, learning and social change.
• Empowering our students to become reflective and responsible citizens who have the vision, the knowledge and the competences to change society for the better.
• Energising global, European and Danish communities of knowledge by innovating research methodologies and by research findings with impact

For more on the Faculty strategy, see socialsciences.ku.dk/faculty/strategy/. You can read the Department’s strategy here: psychology.ku.dk/the-department/strategy/

Terms of Employment

• Further information on qualification requirements as postdoc can be found in the Memorandum on Job Structure for Academic Staff at Danish Universities 2019 here: https://employment.ku.dk/faculty/criteria-for-recognising-merit/dokumenter/Ministerial_Order_no._1443_of_11_December_2019_on_Job_Structure_for_Academic_Staff_at_Universities.pdf.
• Terms of appointment and salary is in accordance with the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations (Akademikerne).
• The salary range starts at DKK 38,575 per month + a 17.1 % contribution to the pension scheme. It is possible to negotiate salary supplements on an annual basis.

The recruitment process
Further information on the recruitment process at University of Copenhagen can be found here: https://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/

An Equal Opportunity Workplace
The University of Copenhagen is committed in its pursuit of academic excellence to equality of opportunity and to creating an inclusive working environment and therefore encourages all qualified candidates to apply, regardless of personal background, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, ethnicity etc. For more on the diverse working place environment at the University and the University’s participation in the HRS4R HR Excellence in Research, see https://employment.ku.dk/working-at-ucph/eu-charter-for-researchers/.

International applicant?
The University of Copenhagen offers a broad variety of services for international researchers and accompanying families, including support before and during your relocation and career counselling to expat partners. Please find more information about these services as well as information on entering and working in Denmark here: https://ism.ku.dk/.

Contact information
Information about the recruitment process is available from HR, e-mail: [email protected], please refer to ID number: 211-1996/24-2I #1.

Additional information about the position can be obtained from Tone Roald, e-mail: [email protected], phone 35324847.

How to apply
Submit a complete application at our online portal. Click on the “Apply now” icon at the bottom of the page to apply. The documents must be in Adobe PDF or Word.

Your application must be written in English and include the following documents:

• Cover letter, detailing your motivation and background for applying for this specific position
• A short research plan including reflections on the phenomenology of experiences with architecture. This should contain both theoretical and empirical reflections as well as a research and publication plan. This paper must not exceed 3 standard pages, corresponding to approximately 600 characters (including title, punctuation, figures, footnotes and references, but excluding bibliography). A substantial breach of this will result in the application being excluded from consideration.
• Curriculum vitae including a complete list of publications must be submitted with the application. Theoretical and empirical experience with phenomenological psychology should be highlighted
• Diploma (master and bachelor)
• PhD diploma and the PhD-assessment report
• Two published articles or a monograph on which the applicant is the main author

If these records are in another language that English, Danish, Norwegian or Swedish, please include a translation into either of these languages in your application.

The closing date for applications is 11 November 2024 23:59 [CET].
Applications or enclosures received thereafter will not be considered.

Københavns Universitet giver sine knap 10.000 medarbejdere muligheder for at udnytte deres talent fuldt ud i et ambitiøst, uformelt miljø. Vi sikrer traditionsrige og moderne rammer om uddannelser og fri forskning på højt internationalt niveau. Vi søger svar og løsninger på fælles problemer og gør ny viden tilgængelig og nyttig for andre.

Info
Ansøgningsfrist: 11-11-2024

Ansættelsesdato: 01-02-2025

Afdeling/Sted: Institut for Psykologi