Position Overview

The Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, is seeking a Post-Doctoral Associate to conduct research in the Developmental Social Cognitive Neuroscience Lab under the direction of Dr. Stephanie Carlson. The candidate will be working on longitudinal research projects examining developmental outcomes among children and adolescents (ages 9-17). Specifically, the remotely conducted studies are investigating the alignment of measures and respective contributions of executive function, personal attributes, and economic preferences to typically developing childrenâ™s (1) interest and achievement in STEM fields, and (2) physical and mental health outcomes. The work will involve training in developmental science within a lively lab focused on executive function and related academic skills and human flourishing, as well as additional training in the responsible conduct of research, grant writing, manuscript preparation, and professional development.

The candidate will join two ongoing projects around the midpoint of 3-4-year longitudinal studies, each with a sample size targeted at 1,000. Two full-time project coordinators are supporting data collection and related tasks. The Postdoctoral Associate will oversee data management and data analyses, present results at conferences, and co-author publications. The Post-Doctoral Associate will communicate closely with Co-PIs on the projects, including Professor James Heckman (University of Chicago), Dr. Patrick Kyllonen (Educational Testing Service), and Professor Thomas Dohmen (University of Bonn).

This position is based on the Minneapolis east bank campus. Per UMN policy, work may be done remotely when appropriate and approved by your supervisor. All UMN employees are expected to follow applicable public health and safety procedures.  This position will report to Stephanie Carlson. The target start date is flexible, beginning as soon as July 1, 2025. The position is planned for two years, with potential for a third year pending funding.

Job Responsibilities

Research implementation (25%)

• Input on design decisions and measure selection
• Supervise daily operations of research staff 
• Participate in monthly PI team meetings
• Communicate as needed with local and external team members to accomplish goals

Data management (25%)

• Oversee data cleaning and coding
• Develop or improve data pipelines
• Comply with data security guidelines

Data analysis (25%)

• Data reduction of predictor and outcome measures
• Determine and implement optimal strategies for testing multiple hypotheses
• Utilize appropriate statistical packages
• Prepare data visualization

Dissemination (20%)

• Participate in preparing and presenting data to study investigators and disseminating results to professional and other audiences (e.g., funding agencies)
• Author or co-author, or otherwise collaborate on reports, conference papers, and journal publications

Professional development (5%)

• Professional and career development opportunities within or outside of the department (e.g., ICD Bag Lunch, workshops)

Required Qualifications

• PhD in psychology, human development, or a related field.
• Ability to collaborate effectively with people from a variety of communities, backgrounds, and identities.

Preferred Qualifications

• Research experience, including data collection and analysis, in the field of child development or education
• Familiarity with Qualtrics and Inquisit for data collection
• Proficiency with data pipeline management, including cleaning and coding algorithms (e.g., Python)
• Familiarity with psychometric analyses
• Expertise in conducting advanced statistical analyses (e.g., data reduction techniques, multilevel models, structural equation modeling) in SPSS, Stata, Mplus, or R
• Proficiency in data visualization 
• Potential to obtain extramural funding, as evidenced by writing grants, receipt of external funding, and/or coursework in grant writing
• Prior experience publishing scholarly work and presenting at research conferences as lead author.

About University of Minnesota Twin Cities

The University of Minnesota, founded in the belief that all people are enriched by understanding, is dedicated to the advancement of learning and the search for truth; to the sharing of this knowledge through education for a diverse community; and to the application of this knowledge to benefit the people of the state, the nation, and the world.

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