Deadline: Applications will be accepted until the position is filled.
Contact: Sarah Pope, sarah_pope@eva.mpg.de; Katharina Haberl, haberl@eva.mpg.de
Institute: Department of Comparative Cultural Psychology, Max Planck Institute for evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04315 Leipzig, Deutschland
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The Department of Comparative Cultural Psychology in the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig is accepting applications for two fully-funded PhD Fellowships, to begin late Spring or early Summer 2020.
We invite motivated and creative applicants to join us in exploring how and why facets of cognitive flexibility vary between primate species and across human cultures. Additionally, this project will assess the impacts of resource predictability, environmental stability, and exposure to formal education on individual and group differences in cognitive flexibility. The project will be led by Dr. Sarah Pope, postdoctoral researcher, and supervised by Prof. Dr. Daniel Haun, Director of the Comparative Cultural Psychology department.
Candidates must have a Master’s degree in experimental psychology or a related field including, but not limited to, cognitive neuroscience, behavioral ecology, anthropology, or primatology. Candidates must also have ample prior experience in empirical study design, data collection, and statistical analyses. English proficiency, both written and spoken, is also required.
Candidates of all nationalities are invited to apply. The Max Planck Society and Comparative Cultural Psychology department are committed to equal opportunities and encourage applications from individuals with disabilities and those that are typically underrepresented in science fields, such as women and minorities.
Information on the institute is available at http://www.eva.mpg.de/.
Project descriptions:
Position 1, cross-cultural variation in cognitive flexibility. This project will involve periodic fieldwork in the Republic of the Congo or other field sites. The ideal candidate should be experienced in living or working in off-grid settings, with the following skills preferred, but not necessarily required:
Experience conducting cross-cultural, or similar research (esp. in Africa)
Intermediate to advanced French language skills
Leadership mentality, able to coordinate and motivate a small team
Position 2, cross-species differences in cognitive flexibility in apes. This project will involve extensive interaction with the gorillas, orangutans, bonobos, and chimpanzees at the Leipzig zoo. The ideal candidate should be experienced in working with nonhuman primates, with the following skills preferred, but not necessarily required:
Experience working in zoo or sanctuary settings
Experience coding computer-based experiments
Self-motivated, able to coordinate with a large team
Applications will be accepted until the position is filled. However, due to upcoming fieldwork, application review will not begin until April 1st,2020. Please send the following documents to sarah_pope@eva.mpg.de :
1) CV
2) Cover Letter highlighting relevant experience
3) A writing sample (1-2 first-authored manuscripts or other scientific writings)
4) Contact information for 3 letters of recommendation, two from a professor or research supervisor, and one from a previous or current roommate (or similar peer).
The Max Planck Society is committed to equal opportunities and to employing individuals with disabilities and explicitly encourages them to apply. Additionally, the Max Planck Society wishes to increase the proportion of women in areas in which they are underrepresented; women are therefore explicitly encouraged to apply.