Postdoctoral Researcher in Cognitive Neuroscience - Hiring in process/Finished, not possible to apply

Do you want to contribute to top quality medical research?

In our research group, you will find a unique opportunity to work together with top researchers in cognitive neuroscience to jointly try to understand how the brain encodes the attention of others. To achieve this goal, we conduct various research projects that lie in the relatively unexplored intersection between social cognition and attentional processing. We use several different methods, including functional magnetic brain imaging (fMRI), behavioral and psychophysical approaches (including advanced eye tracking), and intracranial electrophysiological (EEG) recordings in neurosurgical patients. We offer an engaging and international research environment where you get an opportunity to contribute to high-quality research at the highest international level.

Your mission

As a postdoctoral fellow in the group, you will lead a new project that aims to determine how autistic people process the attention of others. Our research group has characterized a novel mechanism by which the brain encodes others’ attention as an implied motion connecting agents to attended objects (the “Mind Beam” hypothesis). Although people show no awareness of this agent-to-object motion, it has a significant effect on motion-processing brain areas and behavioral measures, and on social cognitive decisions about the attention of others. Using fMRI and behavioral measurements, we want to investigate whether autistic people engage their visual motion systems when viewing other people gazing at objects, and compare their responses to a neurotypical cohort. The project is initially ongoing for 2 years, with possibility of extension. You will also be able to develop your own ideas within the areas of social cognition and attention. With the help of research assistants, you will be responsible for setting up experiments, analyzing data and writing scientific articles. We have access to two state-of-the-art 3-Tesla MRI scanners at the Karolinska Institutet and Stockholm University Brain Imaging Center (SUBIC), and collaborate with a group of neurosurgeons in Portland (Oregon, USA) for intracranial EEG experiments.

As a postdoctoral fellow, you are offered the opportunity to work in a successful and well-funded research group, and will be surrounded by a number of senior and junior researchers. Our research group collaborates with other groups at the department and a number of prominent research groups around the world, which provides an opportunity for international exchanges.

Your profile

Qualified to be employed as a postdoctor is one who has obtained a doctorate or has equivalent scientific competence. It is considered as an advantage if you have completed your doctoral degree within the last three years, if there are special reasons, your degree may have been completed earlier. Applicants who have not completed a doctorate at the end of the application period may also apply, provided that all requirements for a completed degree are met before the (intended) date of employment. This must be substantiated by the applicant's main supervisor, director or equivalent.

We are looking for a talented, innovative, and enthusiastic researcher with a PhD in a relevant research field. The successful candidate has previous well-documented research experience of working with advanced fMRI analyses (ideally multivoxel pattern analyses) or other advanced experimental electrophysiology or related research experiences. Previous research experience on neurodevelopmental disorders is desirable, but not a requirement. A consistently excellent academic track record is required, including publications in high-quality international scientific journals. English is the main language of communication in the research group, therefore it is a requirement to have strong English skills in writing and speaking.

Potential candidates will be interviewed and personal skills and characteristics will be considered when filling the position.

What do we offer?

A creative and inspiring environment with wide-ranging expertise and interests. Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. At Karolinska Institutet, we conduct successful medical research and hold the largest range of medical education in Sweden. At KI, you get to meet researchers working with a wide range of specialisms and methods, giving you ample opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience with the various scientific fields within medicine and health. It is the crossover collaborations, which have pushed KI to where it is today, at the forefront of global research. Several of the people you meet in healthcare are educated at KI. A close relationship with the health care providers is important for creating groundbreaking top quality education and research. Karolinska Institutet is also a state university, which entitles you to several benefits through our collective agreement.

Location: Solna

Read more about the Department of Clinical Neuroscience
Read more about the research you will be part of

Application

An employment application must contain the following documents in English or Swedish:

• A complete resumé, including date of the thesis defence, title of the thesis, previous academic positions, academic title, current position, academic distinctions, and committee work
• A complete list of publications
• A summary of current work (no more than one page)
• Description of own ideas within the field that you want to pursue (optional, no more than one page)

Welcome to apply at the latest October 20th 2022

The application is to be submitted through the Varbi recruitment system.

Want to make a difference? Join us and contribute to better health for all!