U Penn: Postdoc in Communication, Group Identity, and Computational Methods (USA)

Postdocs
Postdoctoral Researcher in Communication, Group Identity, and Computational  Methods, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA. Deadline: 15 August 2024.

The successful candidate for this position will work in the Annenberg School for Communication under the supervision of Dr. Deen Freelon. A recent hire at Annenberg, Freelon is in the process of starting a new lab, and this postdoc will play a crucial role in helping him do so. The unifying idea of the new lab’s work is that many facets of group identity—including race, gender, sexuality, religion, nationality, and others—have historically been neglected as potential factors in co-determining communication patterns and outcomes. Quantification of such characteristics must be done carefully to maximize construct validity and minimize harm and exclusion. (The term “group identity” is used broadly and without reference to any particular theoretical tradition.) Applicants with strong interests in these and related issues are encouraged to apply, as are those with experience analyzing under-studied media types including podcasts, images, and video.

Roughly half this individual’s time will be spent working on Freelon’s projects, while the other half will be devoted to projects initiated independently and with other research groups. The position is designed to allow a highly motivated researcher to build a strong CV under the mentorship of a longtime innovator in political communication and computational social science. Extension of the position to a second year (if desired) will depend on effective performance in the first.