Research Associate in Human Factors Psychology

Internal & External Website; Cardiff; On-site; GBP 41,000 - 46,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

45 days annual leave

Local pension scheme

Cycle to work

Job summary

Cardiff University’s School of Psychology invites applications for a Research Associate in Human Factors Psychology. The role is part of the EPSRC AI4CI Hub and will work on experimental activities within a human-centred design theme to explore AI-driven agents that support collective decision making.

This full-time, fixed-term position (two years) offers a salary between £41,064 and £46,049 per year (starting at £44,746) with additional benefits and flexible working options.

Responsibilities

• Develop and deliver AI4CI experimental packages within a human-centred design theme.
• Collaborate with national and local government, and industry partners to shape the research programme.
• Evaluate how AI-driven 'smart' agents can support collective decision making and trust.

Job description

Job Advert

Research Associate in Human Factors Psychology

School of Psychology

This role is part of the EPSRC National AI for Collective Intelligence (AI4CI) Hub: a 5-year (2024-2029) £12M project bringing together researchers from across the UK addressing challenges in pandemic resilience, smart cities, financial stability, healthcare ecosystems, and environmental intelligence. The post-holder will work within the cross-cutting human-centred design (HCD) theme, interacting actively with members of the wider research community of the Hub, identifying synergies that will help build our collective intelligence.

The post-holder will work on an EPSRC project (AI for Collective Intelligence / AI4CI - https://ai4ci.ac.uk/) under the leadership of Professor Phil Morgan to develop and deliver packages - with a key focus on experimental work - within a cross-cutting human-centred design theme, which explores the ways in which AI-driven 'smart' agents and/or advisors can leverage collective intelligence to help people to make decisions. There will also be a focus on design features that can enable acceptance, adoption, and continued use of AI 'smart' agents and/or advisors whilst always keeping in mind appropriate trust (vs over- or under- trust).

The work will directly impact people, organisations, and policymakers by harnessing the power of data-driven insights, and the post-holder will interact closely with our partners in national and local government as well as the commercial sector in shaping the research programme.

This role will initially be focused on using AI to design and test trusted 'smart' agents or advisors and then will progress to evaluating their impact on the tipping points for collective behaviour change.

This position is available immediately, full time (35 hours per week) and is fixed term for two years.

Secondment opportunity welcome – please note for Cardiff University members of staff interested in this post on a secondment basis, permission will need to be sought from your current Line Manager before applying.

Salary: £41,064 - £46,049 per annum (Grade 6). Appointments to roles at Cardiff University are usually made at bottom of scale unless in exceptional circumstances, however, for this position, the starting salary is capped at £44,746 per annum (point 35) due to limited funding.

Cardiff University offers many excellent benefits, including 45 days annual leave (incl. bank holidays), local pension scheme, a cycle to work scheme and other travel initiatives, annual increments within the pay scale, and more. It's an exciting and vibrant place to work with many different challenges and is a proud Living Wage supporter.

Cardiff University is committed to supporting and promoting equality and diversity and to creating an inclusive working environment. We believe this can be achieved through attracting, developing, and retaining a diverse range of staff from many different backgrounds. We therefore welcome applicants from all sections of the community regardless of sex, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, trans identity, relationship status, religion or belief, caring responsibilities, or age. We especially welcome and encourage applications from those from under-represented groups within the University workforce, such as those who identify as LGBT +, Ethnic Minority or those with disabilities. In supporting our employees to achieve a balance between their work and their personal lives, we will also consider proposals for flexible working or job share arrangements.

Cardiff University is a signatory to the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA), which means that in hiring and promotion decisions we will evaluate applicants on the quality of their research, not publication metrics or the identity of the journal in which the research is published. More information is available at: Responsible research assessment - Research - Cardiff University

Applications may be submitted in Welsh, and an application submitted in Welsh will not be treated less favourably than an application submitted in English.