[visionlist] Post-Doctoral Position to Research Factors That Influence Cognitive Training Outcomes

[Aaron Seitz]

Post-Doctoral Position to Research Factors That Influence Cognitive Training Outcomes at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, UC Riverside and UC Irvine.

C. Shawn Green (UW-Madison), Aaron Seitz (UC-Riverside) and Susanne Jaeggi (UC-Irvine) are seeking to hire a post-doctoral researcher to work on a project funded by the National Institute on Aging. The project is focused on investigating features of cognitive training that differentially lead to learning and transfer of learning in both young adults (college-aged individuals) as well as in older adults. The post-doctoral researcher is expected to take a lead role in the project, including setting up experiments, collecting and analyzing data, training and supervision of graduate students and undergraduate research assistants, and dissemination of results at conferences and in research publications.

Successful candidates should have strong technical skills, including in data analysis (R preferred), management skills, creativity and a high-level of conscientiousness, as these are required to play a lead role in this sizeable project. They should also have expertise in one or more of the following areas (and knowledge of the others): working memory, cognitive training, perceptual learning, and methods of assessing individual differences and effects of interventional studies. Experience in programming psychophysical experiments, in either MATLAB or Python, is preferred. Researchers must possess a doctoral degree in Psychology, Education, Cognitive Science, Neuroscience, or a related field.

The primary appointment will be at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the Learning and Transfer Lab of C. Shawn Green (https://greenlab.psych.wisc.edu/). The lab’s broad focus is to examine factors that alter the rate and generality of learning in both the perceptual and cognitive domains. The University of Wisconsin offers excellent benefits. Salary is based on research experience. The initial appointment is for 1 year with a possibility of extension.

Furthermore, although the postdoc’s primary location will be at UW-Madison, the postdoc will also spend time on the UCR and UCI campuses and work closely with both Seitz and Jaeggi to insure that procedures are coordinated between all three sites and that all personnel are properly trained and supervised.

At UCR (Seitz), the project will fall under the purview of the Brain Game Center, whose mission is to research, test, and disseminate evidence-based, scientifically optimized brain fitness games that transfer benefits to real-life activities. The Center has recently moved into a 3000 square foot facility that provides an ideal environment for the proposed work with a staff of full time research coordinators, full time programmers and a team of postdocs, graduate students, and an army of research assistants that facilitates the development, testing and dissemination of brain training games and cognitive assessment tools. The Brain Game Center is the only university-based research center focused on research of brain training games, and it has a track record of making tested procedures publically available so that people can try them out for themselves.

At UCI (Jaeggi), the project will fall under the purview of the Working Memory and Plasticity Lab (http://wmp.education.uci.edu) whose mission lies in the development of working memory interventions for populations across the lifespan, with the aim to understand the underlying cognitive and neural mechanisms that drive training-related changes using behavioral and neuroimaging methods, as well as transcranial electrical stimulation. The WMP lab currently employs 3 full-time research coordinators, as well as a team of undergraduate research assistants, and graduate students and post-docs from both  the School of Education and the Department of Cognitive Sciences, and there is a host of ongoing national and international research collaborations providing opportunities for networking and intellectual exchange.

Candidates should send a cover letter, CV, relevant publications, and the names of three references with phone numbers and email addresses to: C. Shawn Green (cshawn.green at wisc.edu). The ideal starting time for the position would be during the Fall of 2022. However, we will also consider possible start times through the first few months of 2023. Thus, individuals planning to complete their dissertation during Fall 2022 are encouraged to apply. Review of materials will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled.

 

 

-Aaron

 

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Aaron Seitz, Ph.D.

Professor of Psychology

Director of UCR Brain Game Center

Outgoing Director of UCR Aging Initiative

Campbell Endowed Term Chair for Research Excellence and Undergraduate Research Mentoring 

University of California, Riverside

900 University Ave.

Riverside, CA 92521

 

Ph:   (951) 827-6422

Fax:  (951) 827-3985

Email: aseitz at ucr.edu

Web:   http://faculty.ucr.edu/~aseitz/

BGC:    http://braingamecenter.ucr.edu

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