PhD Candidate in Psychology of Artificial Intelligence

Ntnu; Trondheim; Hybrid; NOK 522.000 - 638.000; Vollzeit

Benefits dieser Stelle

Free Norwegian language training at a1

Zusammenfassung

NTNU in Trondheim invites applications for a PhD Candidate in psychology to pursue doctoral studies while contributing to the aiD centre on AI for decisions. You will conduct quantitative work on trust in communication from large language models within a cross-disciplinary team.

You will develop and publish research, collaborate internationally, and participate in a structured doctoral program while advancing the university's research mission.

Qualifikationen

• Master's degree in psychology or equivalent with average grade of B or better.
• Strong oral and written English skills.
• Experience with experimental design and quantitative analyses.
• Experience with research on psychological drivers of interpersonal trust and/or trust in human-machine interaction.
• Experience with empirical field work.
• Experience with work in interdisciplinary teams.
• Norwegian/Scandinavian language skills are an advantage.

Aufgaben

• Complete the doctoral education until obtaining a doctorate.
• Carry out research of good quality within the described framework.
• Academic publications and popular science dissemination.
• Participate in the research group Citizen, Environment and Safety, and the aiD research center.
• Participate in international activities such as conferences and/or research stays at foreign educational institutions.
• Networking with the other partners in the aiD research center.

Kenntnisse

English proficiency

Experimental design

Quantitative analysis

Interdisciplinary collaboration

Trust in AI interactions

Fieldwork experience

Ausbildung

Master's degree in psychology (5-year Norwegian program)

Master's thesis (≥30 ECTS)

Jobbeschreibung

NTNU is a broad-based university with atechnical-scientific profile and a focusin professional education. The university is located in three cities with headquarters in Trondheim.

At NTNU, 8,6000 employees and 44,000 students work to create knowledge for a better world.

You will find more information about working at NTNU and the application process here.

About the position

Are you motivated to take a step towards a doctorate and open up exciting career opportunities? As a PhD Candidate with us, you will work to achieve your doctorate, and at the same time gain valuable experience that qualifies you for a further career in higher education and research, in and outside academia.

Your immediate leader will be the head of the academic unit.

About the project

The position is part of the large-scale Norwegian Centre on AI for Decisions (aiD). aiD is an interdisciplinary collaboration involving 3 academic institutions, 6 research organizations, and over 50 professional organizations. Our primary objective is to advance AI for decision-making through fundamental research and real-world use cases, ensuring that AI-enhanced human decisions or fully autonomous systems are effective, safe, and trustworthy in sectors critical to society. aiD moves beyond traditional AI models that are purely descriptive. Instead, we employ a holistic framework where the primary learning objective is the decision outcome itself. This involves backpropagating learning through the entire decision process, from converting raw data into information to predicting how actions impact the real world while modeling risk and human preferences. Our research addresses several critical challenges that currently limit AI adoption in professional organizations, including low trustworthiness, immature technology, and a shortage of expertise regarding emerging regulations.

The PhD project announced here is located in the research group for Citizens, Environment and Safety at the Department of Psychology. It will focus on research about which mechanisms drive the development of trust or distrust in communication generated by Large Language Models. It will address research questions such as the following: Is trust in communication with LLMs built following the same principles as in human to human conversation and is this different from communication with other types of AI? Does it make a difference if participants know they are communicating with an AI? Does it impact decision-making if LLMs manage to create trust? These questions will be studied in a primarily quantitative, experimental approach, likely with selected professional partners from the center as cases.
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Duties of the position

• Complete the doctoral education until obtaining a doctorate
• Carry out research of good quality within the framework described above
• Academic publications and popular science dissemination
• Participate in the research group Citizen, Environment and Safety, as well as the aiD research center
• Participate in international activities such as conferences and/or research stays at foreign educational institutions
• Networking with the other partners in the aiD research center.

Be prepared for changes to your work duties after employment.

Required selection criteria

• You must have a relevant Master's degree in psychology or equivalent. Your course of study must correspond to a five-year Norwegian course, where normally 120 credits have been obtained at master's level. Your degree must include a major independent project (minimum 30 ECTS) equivalent to a master’s thesis,
• You must have a strong academic background from your previous studies and have an average grade from your Master's degree study, or equivalent education, which is equal to B or better compared to NTNU's grading scale . If you do not have letter grades from previous studies, you must have an equally good academic foundation. If you have a weaker grade background, you may be considered if you can document that you are particularly suitable for a PhD education.
• Good oral and written presentation skills in English
• Documented skills in experimental design and quantitative analyses
• Experience with research on psychological drivers of interpersonal trust and/or trust in human-machine interaction
• Experience with empirical field work
• Experience with work in interdisciplinary teams
• Good oral and written presentation skills in Norwegian/Scandinavian equivalent level are an advantage

Personal characteristics

To complete a doctoral degree (PhD), it is important that you are able to:

• Work independently
• Work in a structured way, set goals and make plans to achieve them
• Present and discuss your research with other professionals
• Get involved and contribute constructively with feedback from professionals within or outside your field
• Work constructively under pressure or in the face of adversity
• Show curiosity and a strong motivation for the subject
• Analyze data, assess different perspectives and draw well-founded conclusions
• Be flexible and open to adjusting the plan for the project as needed
• Being able to work in a team with different background

Emphasis will be placed on personal qualities.

We offer

• An exciting job with an important mission in society
• Developing tasks in a strong and international professional environment
• Open and inclusive working environment with committed colleagues
• Free Norwegian language training at a basic level (A2)

We strive to attract employees with different skills, life experiences and perspectives to contribute to even better problem solving of our societal mission in research and education.

At NTNU we want to increase the proportion of women in scientific positions. We have a number of measures to promote equality.

Salary and conditions

In the position of PhD Candidate, code 1017, your gross salary will normally be NOK 580 000,-per annum depending on qualifications and seniority. A 2% statutory contribution to the State Pension Fund is deducted from the salary.

The employment period is 3 years for the doctoral work.

For employment as a PhD Candidate, it is a prerequisite that you gain admission to the PhD programme in Social Sciences within three months of your employment contract start date, and that you participate in an organized doctoral programme throughout the period of employment.
As an employee at NTNU, it is important that you keep yourself up to date with academic and organizational changes and adapt to them.
For the necessary professional and social interaction, it is a prerequisite that you are physically present and available to the institution on a daily basis.

The appointment is carried out in accordance with the principles of the State Employees Act, and Export control (legislation that regulates the export of knowledge, technology and services). Candidates who, after assessment of the application and attachments, are considered to be in conflict with the criteria in the latter act, will not be able to be employed.

The appointment is carried out in accordance with the principles of the State Employees Act , and Export control (legislation that regulates the export of knowledge, technology and services). Candidates who, after assessment of the application and attachments, are considered to bein conflict with the criteria in the latter act, will not be able to be employed.

About the application

The attachments (including a description of your scientific work) must accompany the application as these documents form the basis of the application assessment. The documents must be in Norwegian/a Scandinavian language or English.

Please note: the application will only be assessed on the basis of the information we have received by the application deadline. Therefore, make sure that your application clearly shows how your skills and experience meet the criteria described above. The application and all attachments must be sent electronically via Jobbnorge.no. If you are invited to an interview, you must bring certified copies of certificates and diplomas upon request.

The application must include:

• Transcripts and diplomas for Bachelor's and Master's degrees
• CV
• Copy of Master's thesis. If you have recently submitted your Master's thesis, you can attach a draft of the thesis. Documentation of a completed Master's degree must be presented before taking up the position.
• Possibly publications etc. other relevant research work
• Possibly certificates
• Names and contact information of three relevant referees

If all, or parts, of your education has been taken abroad, we also ask you to attach documentation of the scope and quality of your entire education, both Bachelor's and Master's education, in addition to other higher education. If your institution uses “diploma supplement” (normal for most European institutions), you must attach this. A description of the documentation required can also be found here . If you already have a statement from Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills (HK-dir) , please attach this as well.

Joint work will be considered. If it is difficult to identify your contribution to joint work, you must attach a brief description of your participation.

When assessing the best qualified, we emphasize necessary qualifications such as education, experience and personal suitability. Motivation for the position, ambitions, and potential for research will also count when assessing the candidates.
NTNU recognizes a wide range of academic contributions and has committed itself to The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment and CoARA (responsible assessment of research and recognition of a greater breadth of academic contributions in accordance with NTNU's social mission).

General information

A public list of applicants with name, age, job title and municipality of residence is prepared after the application deadline. If you wish to be exempt from entry on the public applicant list, this must be justified. Assessment will be made in accordance with current legislation . You will be notified if the exemption is not granted.

If you have any questions about the position, please contact Prof. Christian A. Klöckner, email [e-mail] . If you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact Ina Grønbech Halvorsen, email: [e-mail]

The city of Trondheim is a modern European city with a rich cultural scene. Trondheim is the tech capital of Norway with a population of 200,000.The Norwegian welfare state, including healthcare, schools, kindergartens and overall equality, is probably the best of its kind in the world. Professional subsidized day-care for children is easily available. Furthermore, Trondheim offers great opportunities for education (including international schools) and possibilities to enjoy nature, culture and family life and has low crime rates and clean air quality.

NTNU - knowledge for a better world

NTNU - knowledge for a better world

The Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) creates knowledge for a better world and solutions that can change everyday life.

Department of Psychology

Our research and teaching are based on five perspectives: biological, cognitive, social, personality and developmental psychology. We offer a clinical programme in psychology as well as study programmes in the psychology of learning and in work and organizational psychology. We have also three outpatient clinics in which we treat patients as part of the clinical programme. The Department of Psychology is one of six departments in the Faculty of Social and Educational Sciences .