Postdoctoral Researcher, in the FRONT research programme

6G Flagship; Oulu; On-site; EUR 41,000 - 48,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible working hours

Wellness benefit ePassi

Buddy Programme

Career development

Job summary

The University of Oulu is inviting applications for a Postdoctoral Researcher in the FRONT programme within the Faculty of Education and Psychology. The candidate will study critical emotional awareness (CEA) as a resilience factor against disinformation and civic engagement among youth, conducting interviews and developing a scale for testing in groups of young people.

In collaboration with the SERSus group, you will publish articles, pursue funding opportunities, and contribute to teaching

Qualifications

• PhD in a relevant field awarded within the last ten years.
• Strong skills in advanced statistical analyses and experience with quantitative survey studies, preferably scale development.
• Experience with qualitative methods including conducting interviews and analyzing data.
• Excellent written and interpersonal communication skills in English.

Responsibilities

• Conduct interviews to explore young people’s emotions in relation to polycrisis.
• Develop a survey scale to capture critical emotional awareness (CEA) and test it in youth groups.
• Collaborate with FRONT project leader and SERSus group on data collection and analysis.
• Write and publish articles based on interview data and survey results.
• Engage in applications for research funding and contribute to dissemination.
• Participate in teaching activities as needs arise and capabilities allow.

Skills

Advanced statistical analyses

Quantitative survey methods

Qualitative interviews

Academic collaboration

English proficiency

Education

Doctoral degree in psychology/education/social sciences

Job description

Faculty of Education and Psychology, Teacher education, school and society

The University of Oulu is a multidisciplinary, international research university, with about 4000 employees who produce new knowledge based on high‑standards research and provide research based education to build a more sustainable, smarter, and more humane world. The University of Oulu community has about 19,000 people in total. Our northern scientific community operates globally and creates conditions for the emergence of innovations. The University of Oulu is ranked in the top 3% of the world’s universities.

We are now looking for a Postdoctoral Researcher to join us in the Frontiers of Arctic and Global Resilience (FRONT) research programme at the University of Oulu. The postdoctoral researcher position will be placed in the Faculty of Education and Psychology. FRONT is a national profiling action supported by the Research Council of Finland. FRONT focuses on changing human‑environment relations and challenges to cope and adapt with that change and aims for ground‑breaking transdisciplinary research on resilience and how to ‘Adapt for Our Future’ in the Arctic and elsewhere on the planet. FRONT involves cutting‑edge research to advance the existing frontiers of knowledge on systemic changes needed for resilience planning and governance, and for finding solutions to the wicked problems of resilience across the social and environmental sciences. FRONT focuses on international top‑level collaborative and transdisciplinary research on socio‑economic and socio‑ecological resilience in different scales across social and environmental sciences, supported by the new Resilience Academy. By bringing together international, national and University of Oulu-based scholars from across disciplines, and encouraging effective public communication of science, FRONT will promote inter‑ and transdisciplinary and citizen‑engaged studies of the environment and raise the University’s profile as an international leader in addressing the challenges of humans in change and human impacts and dependency on environment.

About The Job

We are looking for a postdoctoral researcher in psychology (social psychology, environmental psychology, political psychology, developmental psychology etc.), education, or a neighboring social science field. The two‑year project will be exploring “critical emotional awareness (CEA)” (Ojala, 2023, 2026) as a possible resilience factor against disinformation/propaganda and for civic engagement among young people in a time of polycrisis (climate change, war etc.). The age groups in focus in the project are young people between late childhood and up to young adulthood. The preliminary plan is that the post doc in collaboration with the project leader will: (1) Conduct interviews to explore young people’s emotions, and views about emotions, in relation to different intertwined societal problems (polycrisis), analyze, write, and publish an article on the data. (2) Based on earlier research and the interviews and in collaboration with young people create a survey scale capturing CEA, test how this scale works in groups of young people and publish articles on the data. Besides working in FRONT, you will work together with colleagues in the SERSus (Socio‑Ecological Resilience and Sustainability) research group, led by Prof. Maria Ojala (who is also the project leader of this post doc project), at the Faculty of Education and Psychology, University of Oulu.

As a postdoctoral researcher you will also

• Collaborate in service to FRONT programme, faculty, and university
• Participate in the development and activities of the Resilience Academy of Oulu (RAO)
• Engage in writing and submitting applications for research funding
• Take part in teaching activities, subject to faculty and research unit needs and your own teaching/research capabilities and interests

What We Offer

We offer you a supportive academic environment in a community of committed scholars and the possibility to make use of funding opportunities to generate new research ideas and build an innovative programme that will attract international scholars. The University of Oulu offers flexible working hours, an excellent work‑life balance and provides a range of occupational healthcare services. Our competitive salaries include paid leave and an additional holiday bonus in the summer.

• The support of an experienced and enthusiastic team of people, with whom you can share your expertise and grow as an expert.
• Wellness benefit ePassi covering sport, culture, and well-being. Read more about other staff benefits here.
• Our Buddy Programme and Spouse Network support you and your close ones in settling into Oulu.
• Development and career options of the big organization.
• We have an HR Excellence in Research -quality label, which is a recognition awarded by the European Commission for the development of researchers’ working conditions and careers.
• Work that matters and a workplace that promotes flexibility and work‑life balance. Read more about working with us.
• Finland is one of the most livable countries in the world, with a high quality of life, safety, an excellent education system, and a competitive economy. Read more about living in Oulu.

What We Expect

• A doctoral degree in a relevant field that was awarded not more than ten years ago
• Skills in advanced statistical analyses and a solid experience in working with quantitative survey studies and preferably with scale development
• Experience of qualitative methods in the form of conducting interviews and analyzing interview data
• Good, demonstrated capacity to collaborate in research and research dissemination activities
• Excellent written and interpersonal communication skills in English

We Also Appreciate

• Knowledge of other methodological approaches and multidisciplinary experience
• A transdisciplinary research orientation with demonstrated research experience or interest
• Earlier experience of research about emotions in a societal context
• Earlier experience of psychological or educational research about climate change and other sustainability issues

As a person you are creative, analytical, curious, open to other scientific disciplines, and can conduct excellent research in a novel subfield. When assessing the candidate’s merits for the position of Postdoctoral Researcher, attention will also be paid to scientific excellence, such as research outputs, international scientific activities and collaboration, supervision of undergraduate students, pedagogical competence, societal relevance, impact and potential of scientific activities, and services for the academic community.

Salary

The position is fixed‑term for two years, starting at the latest on 1st of January 2027 or as soon as possible thereafter.

The salary will be based on the levels 5-6 of the demand level chart for teaching and research staff of Finnish universities. In addition, a salary component based on personal work performance will be paid (a maximum of 50 % of the job‑specific component). The starting gross salary will be approx. 3700-4300 € per month (before taxes).

A trial period of 6 months is applied to the position.

We welcome applicants from all backgrounds, including people of different ages, genders, languages, cultures, and minority communities.

Contact Information

If you have any further questions, please contact FRONT coordinator Dr Lotta Haukipuro ([e-mail]) or the project leader Prof. Maria Ojala ([e-mail])

Type of employment Temporary position over 6 months Contract type Full time Number of positions 1 Full-time equivalent 100% City Oulu County Pohjois‑Pohjanmaa Country Finland Reference number 2026/501 Contact

• Lotta Haukipuro, [e-mail]
• Maria Ojala, [e-mail]

Published 14.Aug.2026 Last application date 30.Sep.2026