PhD Studentship: Uncovering Social Processing of Multi-Channels in Dyadic Cooperation

Applications are invited for a 3.5 year PhD studentship in the Centre for Research and Evidence on Security Threats (CREST), based in Psychology at Lancaster University.  The studentship will be supervised by Professor Paul Taylor [Lancaster] and Professor Aldert Vrij [Portsmouth], and will begin in October 2016.

This PhD will examine how verbal and nonverbal behaviour come together in dyadic interactions where people cooperate or compete. How are the messages sent by each channel synthesised (made sense of) and what happens when they appear to contradict one another? Although the PhD studies may make use of a range of methodologies, it is expected that some will draw on Lancaster’s full-body motion capture paradigms using XSens MVN, and a new virtual reality paradigm that allows the study of people’s verbal and nonverbal reactions in an ‘immersive’ police interview simulation. By developing our understanding of cooperation, the PhD is expected to contribute to expertise in interpersonal skills and information elicitation.

You will join a growing group of academic, postdoc and PhDs engaged in projects examining social interaction in law enforcement settings. As part of that group, you will be expected to contribute to meetings, present findings at academic conferences, and publish findings in academic journals. You will also be a member of the Centre for Research and Evidence on Security Threats (CREST) and be encouraged to engage with relevant stakeholders in the security and intelligence agencies, helping them understand the research and its relevance to their practice and policy.

This award provides annual funding to cover UK/EU tuition fees and an ESRC equivalent maintenance grant (currently £14,296). All of the studentships will receive their own research support budgets (e.g., for training and to pay participants) and have access to an associated travel budget, which should be used to attend national and international conferences. Students who would be required to pay international tuition fees are eligible to apply, but they must make appropriate arrangements to cover the difference between the overseas and UK tuition fee.

You should be motivated, ambitious, and able to demonstrate an interest in the PhD area for which you are applying. You should hold, or expect to gain, at least an Upper 2.1 honours degree, or its equivalent, in a relevant discipline. Having or expecting to gain a Masters qualification and/or having other research experience will be an advantage.

To apply, please email a CV, transcript of marks, 2 academic references, and a 750 word statement of interest to phds@crestresearch.ac.uk, using the Subject ‘Dyadic Co-operation PhD’ After the deadline, applications will be reviewed and shortlisted candidates will be invited for interview, before award decisions are made. If you wish to discuss the studentship informally or if you have any questions about the position, please contact Paul Taylor (p.j.taylor@lancaster.ac.uk)