Postdoc Positions – Cross-Cultural Development of Supernatural Beliefs

Post-Doctoral Positions in Cross-Cultural Development of Supernatural Beliefs

 

The Childhood Cognition Lab (PI: Rebekah Richert; https://ccl.ucr.edu/) at the University of California, Riverside (UCR) is inviting applications for two full-time post-doctoral positions to join the Developing Belief Network (Project Directors: Rebekah Richert and Kathleen Corriveau; https://www.developingbelief.com/). A 5-year John Templeton Foundation grant funds the development of a research initiative designed to bring together a network of scholars interested in cross-cultural study of the development of religious cognition and behavior. The post-doctoral scholars will have the exciting opportunity to work with an international network of scholars to build a collaborative research methodology, which will involve training in cross-cultural validation of measures and collection of an expansive and global data set on the development of supernatural beliefs in the first 10 years of life.

 

Project Director: Housed at UCR and directly supervised by Rebekah Richert, the Project Manager will work collaboratively with PIs Richert and Corriveau, with a post-doc and Project Analyst at UCR, with a Data Scientist and post-doc BU, and with representatives from Databrary. The Project Manager will be responsible for coordinating communication between the PIs and the research sites, facilitating the development of a collaborative methodology, developing a training plan for data collection at all research sites, tracking progress to ensure the project remains on time, overseeing the budget, and coordinating reporting. (Minimum Requirements: PhD in Psychology or a related discipline, Experience coordinating a project that involves multiple individuals with varying levels of expertise, Experience managing a large research budget and financial reporting, Excellent written and oral communication skills; Preferred Qualifications: Experience working with people from a variety of cultural backgrounds; Fluency in Spanish; Proficiency with statistical analysis). The annual stipend and benefits will be commensurate with UCR guidelines and in accordance with experience and qualifications.  The approximate start date is July 1, 2020, but later start dates can be considered. Project Director salary will be $62,403-$100,417 depending on experience.

 

Application Instructions: Applicants should submit a cover letter, CV, Statement of Research, and Statement of Past/Present Contributions to Advancing Diversity and Inclusive Excellence, and three letters of recommendation to this link. Review of applications will begin on April 5, 2020 and will continue until the position is filled.

 

Post-Doctoral Researcher: Housed at UCR and directly supervised by Rebekah Richert, the Post-Doctoral Researcher will work collaboratively with PIs Richert and Corriveau, with a Project Manager and Project Analyst at UCR, with a Data Scientist and post-doc BU, and with representatives from Databrary. This position is 1 of 2 post-docs associated with this project; each the post-doc will oversee 4-5 research teams (their home institution plus 3-4 others). This oversight will include facilitating the development of a collaborative methodology, as well as coordinating with site PIs on task translation and in training and implementation of data collection. In addition, the post-docs will take a lead role in surveying existing literature for appropriate tasks, and in data analysis and manuscript writing as data are collected. Time permitting, the scholar will also be encouraged to develop and conduct independent research. (Minimum Requirements: PhD in Psychology or a related discipline, Experience coordinating a project that involves multiple individuals with varying levels of expertise,Excellent written and oral communication skills, Proficiency with statistical analysis; Preferred Qualifications:Experience working with people from a variety of cultural backgrounds; Fluency in Spanish). The annual stipend and benefits will be commensurate with UCR guidelines and in accordance with experience and qualifications.  The approximate start date is July 1, 2020, but later start dates can be considered. Postdoc salary will be $53,460-$61,800 depending on experience.

 

Application Instructions: Applicants should submit a cover letter, CV, Statement of Research, and Statement of Past/Present Contributions to Advancing Diversity and Inclusive Excellence, and three letters of recommendation to https://aprecruit.ucr.edu/JPF01256. Review of applications will begin on April 5, 2020, and will continue until the position is filled.

 

What is the Developing Belief Network?  The initial formation of the Developing Belief network will consist of a minimum of 10 research teams, with the potential for 12 if there is available funding. In addition to the PIs (Richert & Corriveau). Investigators will work across research sites over 5 years to develop a collaborative cross-cultural methodology, create culturally-validated measures, and collect data to contribute to a shared dataset on the development of religious cognition and behavior from children and families around the world. The Developing Belief Network will partner with Databrary to provide access to this rich dataset to the developmental science community broadly.

 

Questions about both positions can be emailed to Dr. Rebekah Richert (rebekah.richert@ucr.edu).

 

University of California, Riverside:  UCR is a world-class research University with an exceptionally diverse undergraduate student body. Its mission is explicitly linked to providing routes to educational success for underrepresented and first-generation college students. A commitment to this mission is a preferred qualification.

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

 

Rebekah A. Richert, Ph.D.

Associate Professor, Psychology
University of California, Riverside