The position of a Research Associate has become available for 24 months from January 2023 at the Hungry Mind Lab (www.hungrymindlab.com) at the Department of Education at the University of York. The position is to support a research project awarded by the Nuffield Foundation to Prof Sophie von Stumm. The project’s aim is to study the role of children’s early-life language experiences in the transmission of family background inequality, and to disseminate the findings to various research stakeholders. The research focus is on understanding children’s developmental differences and charting how their early-life language experiences influence their later educational achievement and socio-emotional skills. The successful candidate will have strong quantitative statistical skills, experience in studying and modelling individual differences, and an interest in researching the causes of children’s differences in development. The ideal candidate will have previously studied the transmission of family background inequality and aims for a career in research. Flexible/ remote working options are available.

The Research Associate will have completed a PhD in psychology, linguistics, behavioural genetics, genomics, or a related discipline with an emphasis on quantitative statistical analysis. S/he will be further trained in data use and advanced statistical analysis for this role. The Research Associate will (a) lead on preregistering data analyses; (b) conduct statistical analyses on the role of early life language experiences in the transmission of family background inequality; (c) prepare manuscripts for publication; and (d) present the findings at meetings and conferences. Prof Sophie von Stumm will supervise, support and mentor the Research Associate in all tasks.

Skills, Experience, and Qualifications

• The Research Associate will have completed a PhD in psychology, linguistics, behavioural genetics, genomics, or a related discipline with an emphasis on quantitative statistical analysis.
• The successful candidate should have knowledge of advanced quantitative statistical analysis, secondary data analysis of cohort study data, and the broader literature on child and language development.
• The successful candidate will have experience with relevant software tools (e.g., R, SPSS, STATA), writing up research for publication, and with developing and conducting research ideas and projects.
• Please see full details on the main qualifications, knowledge, skills, and experience essential to the post in the ‘person specification’ document

This post is available on a fixed term basis for 24 months from 3 January 2023

Interview date: To be confirmed

Full job announcement: https://jobs.york.ac.uk/vacancy/research-associate-491373.html

For informal enquiries: please contact Prof Sophie von Stumm on sophie.vonstumm@york.ac.uk