Postdoctoral Researcher in violence & violence prevention

The Research group Violence & Violence Prevention at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs (ISGA) is looking for a postdoctoral researcher (1.0 fte, 36-month position) with research and teaching expertise in interpersonal violence.

What you will do

The successful candidate will conduct research on how despair, institutional and structural inequalities manifest in (lethal) interpersonal violence, collective violence and self-directed violence and assist with teaching across several programs within the institute, including the MSc in Crisis and Security Management.

• Conduct independent and collaborative research with the research group Violence & Violence Prevention, on the unifying research line of Deaths of Despair – at the intersection between interpersonal, collective and self-directed forms of harm.
• This research line includes questions of governance; the attempts of various security actors (i.e. local and national authorities and police) to prevent these forms of violence and to reduce their impact on individuals and society.
• The position seeks to bring together and strengthen the Violence Research Group members’ expertise, and in doing so, actively contribute to ISGA’s involvement in the SSH strategic theme on mental health. Specifically, the project will examine how these deaths and acts of violence express broader crisis of meaning, belonging, and legitimacy in late modern societies. The aim is to advance our understanding of the relationships between emotion, larger-scale social processes, and interpersonal, collective and self-directed violence, and to assess their role in the prevention and governance of theseforms of violence.
• In the spirit of Team Science, the postdoc will produce joint publications with Research Group members, assist in the Group’s teaching activities (among others on the domain of governance) and expand (inter)national visibility for interdisciplinary research on violence and violence prevention.
• Collect and quantitatively analyze data on one or several of the topics mentioned above.
• Produce high-quality co-authored outputs for both academic and non-academic audiences, with a focus on international, peer-reviewed journals.
• Work within a multidisciplinary team across the Violence & Violence Prevention research group and other research groups within the Institute, supporting the development and implementation of the Institute’s research strategy.
• Assist in teaching courses in minor, bachelor, and master programs within the institute, including the MSc in Crisis and Security Management.
• Supervise theses and capstone projects.

Our priority is to hire an excellent candidate who can contribute to the research group Violence & Violence Prevention by enhancing and complementing our research agenda, while also assisting in teaching in programs of the wider institute. This opportunity will help the candidate prepare for the next step in their academic career.

If you recognize yourself in this profile, or do not quite meet all the requirements but believe this is the right job for you, please do apply. We look forward to your application.

Where you will work

What you bring

In this team, we are looking for someone who can work independently. Every job is different, so in the beginning we will devote attention to your onboarding. If some of the work activities are new to you, we will look together at what you need, and draw up a development plan. This position is a good fit for you if you recognise yourself in the following:

Applicants are expected to have:

• • • A PhD degree in sociology, criminology, psychology, epidemiology, political science, or a related field relevant to researching and teaching on violence and violence prevention. 
    • Demonstrable quantitative research experience on the topics (lethal) interpersonal violence, gender-based violence, collective violence, and/or self-inflicted violence.
    • Solid expertise in comparative and theoretically grounded analyses is considered an asset.
    • Outstanding quantitative research qualities manifest in a developing and promising publication record.
    • Experience with research-led teaching is considered an asset.
    • Demonstrable passion for education, both inside and outside the classroom.
    • Commitment to fostering a close-knit, interdisciplinary academic community.
    • Experience with diverse research methods and techniques.
    • A growing network of academics and professionals in the field of violence and violence prevention, both domestically and internationally.
    • Ability to connect academic research to policy and societal impact.
    • Excellent command of English, with the ability and willingness to work towards Dutch language proficiency. Current proficiency in Dutch is considered an asset.

What we offer

We offer:

• An employment contract for the duration of 3 years. The contract is entered into for the duration of one year and can be extended with another two years if performance is good and the organizational circumstances remain unchanged. This contract falls under the CLA of Dutch Universities;
• A salary of a minimum of € 4728,- and a maximum of € 6433,- gross per month, based on a full-time appointment (38 hours) (scale 11);
• A holiday allowance (8%), an end-of-year bonus (8,3%), and an attractive pension scheme at ABP;
• Flexible working hours: as a standard, you are entitled to a minimum of 29 leave days on the basis of a full-time working week of 38 hours; you can also save for extra leave, for example by working 40 hours a week, and in this way accrue an extra 96 leave hours, or exchange 96 leave hours for a 36-hour week.
• Lots of options when it comes to secondary employment conditions; we can, for example, discuss options for paid parental leave. Within our terms of employment individual choices model, you can exchange leave days and/or salary for benefits such as an advantageous sports subscription or bicycle scheme.
• If your work allows it, hybrid working is possible within the Netherlands;
• A home-working allowance (day and internet allowance) and attention for good workplaces. The University will also provide you with a laptop;
• Full reimbursement of public transport commuting costs for home-to-work travel;
• The successful candidate must live in The Netherlands prior to the start of contract.

What we find important

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