Postdoctoral Researcher "Political Communication in the Aftermath of Democratic Elections"

Are you looking for a postdoctoral position in political communication research? Are you interested in elections, media-politics relations and framing effects, and would like to become an expert on the topic? Then this position is for you!

Join an exciting research project

The Amsterdam School of Communication Research (ASCoR) is the research institute for the Department Communication Science at the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences. We seek a postdoc for the NWO-funded project “And the winner is…!? The battle for the most impactful framing of election results between media and politics in multi-party systems”. This postdoc position is fully funded for 29 months and part of the Political Communication & Journalism programme group.

Elections in proportional electoral systems tend to produce multi-party systems without a clear majority for a single party. Therefore, election outcomes provide room for interpretation among journalists, politicians, and voters. The purpose of the post-doctoral project “And the winner is…!? The battle for the most impactful framing of election results between media and politics in multi-party systems” is to understand the variety, antecedents, and consequences of how politicians and journalists frame election results in the immediate aftermath of democratic elections. The consequences concern voter perceptions of winners and losers alongside framing effects on political and media cynicism.

The project is divided into three subprojects. The research objective of the first subproject (SP1) is to open the apparent ‘black box’ of the election night and understand how election results in multi-party systems are being framed by politicians and journalists once exit polls and first results are coming in, as these moments are crucial for subsequent framing effects on voter perceptions and attitudes. It is also interested in the extent to which politicians or journalists try to win the upper hand in framing certain election results. SP2 studies preceding campaign developments in order to understand why certain applications of framing emerge and potentially dominate the interaction between politicians and journalists. SP1 and SP2 are comparative and will be studied by quantitative content analysis of campaign and media material related to three past elections (to be determined together with the postdoc). SP3 asks to what extent (counter-) framing among politicians and journalists of election results affects voter perceptions of winners and losers as well as political and media cynicism. The main methods employed for SP3 consist of a lab experiment using mobile real-time response measures and a two-wave panel survey in a future election.

You will take the leading role on the three subprojects, also in terms of authorship on publications. There is some flexibility as regards the order and implementation of the subprojects. You will work together with the project leader Dr Katjana Gattermann, who is based at ASCoR. The project co-leaders are Dr Linda Bos (ASCoR) and Thomas Meyer, PhD (based at the University of Vienna).

What are you going to do

Responsibilities include (but are not limited to):

• Develop, conduct, and publish research on media-politics relations in the direct aftermath of democratic elections in line with the project proposal;
• Contribute to the public debate and organise outreach activities as part of the project at the University of Amsterdam;
• Taking active part in the research environment at ASCoR and contribute to events, research meetings, and grant applications;
• Collaborate with other researchers and attend (international) conferences & workshops

What do you have to offer

You:

• Are excited about empirical research:
• Are eager to learn and apply new methodological and practical skills and dive into different theories at the intersection of communication and political science;
• Have a strong commitment to methodological rigor, scientific integrity, and open science principles;
• Are a team player and enjoy working in an interdisciplinary and internationally collaborative project;
• Enjoy discussing and presenting research in research seminars, workshops and conferences and are keen to communicate results to non-academic audiences;
• Are willing to travel internationally to scientific conferences and workshops, and engage with the scientific community at large.
• Are willing to move to Amsterdam or a location within daily commuting distance for the duration of the contract.

Your experience and profile:

• A PhD degree in communication science, journalism, political science, or related social science field;
• A quantitative empirical research focus and a strong affinity with quantitative content analysis;
• Affinity with or interest in media-politics relations, political communication, and/or election research;
• An excellent written and spoken command of English, demonstrated by, for example, publications in English-language journals;
• Pro-activity as well as the ability, willingness, and commitment to do autonomous work in a multidisciplinary team;
• Strong interpersonal and project management skills.
• Interest in having an active role in organizing workshops, lecture series, and similar events

Desirable experiences:

• Previous experience with research on election campaigns or political news;
• Familiarity with electoral politics in Europe and of (some) European political, party, and/or electoral systems is a plus;
• Knowledge of experimental and survey research is an asset
• Experience in working together with a team of people from different disciplines;

If the vacancy appeals to you, but you are doubting whether you might be THE person we are looking for, please do apply. We encourage all qualified applicants, including minorities, women, people with disabilities, and members of other groups underrepresented in academia to apply. We are committed to creating an environment of mutual respect, inclusiveness, equal opportunities with room for situated experiences, diverse perspectives, and ideas to flourish. This commitment applies to our research, organisation, room for flexibility, training, and community activities as well as our hiring strategy.

What we offer you

We offer a temporary contract (29 months; 38 hours a week). The intended start date for this position is 1-9-2025. The initial term of employment is for one year. Following a positive assessment and barring altered circumstances, this term will be extended by a maximum of 17 months.

What else do we offer

• The opportunity to conduct cutting-edge research in an inspiring academic and international working environment in the heart of Amsterdam
• An enthusiastic and warm team, particularly a vibrant postdoc community, that is open to new colleagues
• A position in which initiative and input are highly valued
• Financial support to attend conferences and for occasional research assistance
• The opportunity to co-organise an international workshop in Amsterdam
• The opportunity to take part in a summer school
• The opportunity for 2-month research visit to the project partner at the Department of Government at the University of Vienna