Postdoc
registration number: fb04-0016-wmz-2025
Entry date:
2025-10-01
Application deadline:
2025-06-15
Salary:
E 13 TV-H
Duration:
4 years
Volume of employment:
full-time
The University of Marburg, founded in 1527, offers a variety of excellent programs of study for around 22,000 students and confronts the important topics of our time through excellent research across a broad spectrum of sciences.
The Department of Psychology, research group on “Psychological Methods”, PI: Prof. Dr. Daniel Heck, is currently accepting applications for a
Postdoc
The position is offered for a period of 4 years and is expected to start on October 1st, 2025. The position is full-time, with salary and benefits commensurate with a public service position in the state Hesse, Germany (TV-H E 13).
The project “Bridging the Gap Between Verbal Psychological Theories and Formal Statistical Modeling with Large Language Models,” funded by the Volkswagen Foundation, explores the use of Large Language Models (LLMs) as a tool in psychological research. The primary focus is on employing LLMs to bridge verbally formulated theories and constructs with statistical modeling and the quantitative analysis of empirical experiments. Using LLMs, stimuli such as words, sentences, and vignettes can be systematically generated to achieve a well-defined and higher variability of stimuli for empirical research. Additionally, LLMs are well-suited for coding stimulus materials and open-ended responses. As part of this project, robust workflows will be developed and evaluated to ensure that the application of LLMs in psychological research is valid, transparent, and reproducible.
Tasks:
- research in the field of psychological methods and statistical modeling
- development, application, and evaluation of LLMs in psychology, including collaboration with other research groups
- scientific contribution to publications and grant applications for third-party funded projects
- presentation of research findings at (inter)national conferences
- teaching psychological methods for bachelor's and master's psychology programs, amounting to 4 semester hours per week (only during the first year of employment; no teaching obligation thereafter)
- 2, 1 WissZeitVG.
- MSc degree or equivalent, and a PhD in psychology, cognitive science, statistics, or a related field
- strong interest in methodology, statistics, and artificial intelligence, and their application to psychological research
- strong programming skills (e. g., in Python or R)
- excellent English proficiency and strong teamwork skills
- the ability to offer courses in German is a plus
- prior experience with LLMs or statistical modeling is advantageous
- freedom to develop independent research ideas, including their elaboration and publication
- strong supervision and a supportive team
- an attractive, well-equipped research environment
- excellent national and international networking opportunities
- flexible working hours and a family-friendly work environment
- salary based on the collective agreement of the state of Hesse (Tarifvertrag
)
Contact for more Information
Prof. Dr. Daniel Heck
+49 6421-28 23669
daniel.heck@uni-marburg.de
We support women and strongly encourage them to apply. In areas where women are underrepresented, female applicants will be preferred in case of equal qualifications. As a certified family-friendly university, we support our employees in balancing family and career. Sharing a full-time position (
- 8 Abs. 2 S. 1 HGlG) as well as a reduction of working time is possible. Applicants with a disability as discribed in SGB IX (
- 2 Abs. 2, 3) will be preferred in case of equal qualifications. Application and interview costs can not be refunded.
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