[CogSci] Postdoctoral Position, Cognitive Foundations of Environmental Science Education

[Coley, John]

Greetings, Cognitive Science Society!

I’m writing to share the following postdoc opportunity described below. Please feel free to share far and wide, and to direct any questions / inquiries to me (j.coley at northeastern.edu<mailto:j.coley at northeastern.edu>).

Cheers,

John

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John D. Coley, Ph.D. (he/him)
Professor and Associate Chair for Faculty Affairs, Department of Psychology | Northeastern University | Boston MA, USA

Professor, Department of Marine & Environmental Sciences | Northeastern University Marine Sciences Center | Nahant MA, USA



Northeastern University stands on the land of The Wampanoag and The Massachusett People



617.373.3548

j.coley at northeastern.edu<mailto:j.coley at northeastern.edu>

My Zoom Room<https://northeastern.zoom.us/my/j.coley>



Director, Conceptual Organization, Reasoning, and Education Laboratory (CORE Lab<https://corelab.sites.northeastern.edu/>)

Co-Director, Cognitive Laboratory of Environment and Arts Research (CLEAR<https://clear.northeastern.edu/>)

Co-Director, PhD Program in Human Behavior and Sustainability Sciences (HBSS<https://catalog.northeastern.edu/graduate/science/marine-environmental-sciences/human-behavior-sustainability-sciences-phd/>)


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Postdoctoral Associate, Cognitive Foundations of Environmental Science Education: Exploring Impacts of Human Exceptionalism on Marine Social-Ecological Systems Thinking

We are looking for a Postdoctoral Scholar to join an NSF-funded collaboration between Dr. John Coley (Psychology, Marine and Environmental Sciences) and Dr. Brian Helmuth (Marine and Environmental Sciences, Public Policy and Urban Affairs). Although the position would focus on this cross-disciplinary project, the Postdoctoral Scholar would have the opportunity to be involved in other collaborative research projects between Coley’s Conceptual Organization, Reasoning, and Education Laboratory (CORE Lab)<https://corelab.sites.northeastern.edu/> and Helmuth’s Marine Ecological Forecasting, Ecophysiology, and Physical Biology Lab<https://helmuthlab.cos.northeastern.edu/> and/or to pursue individual projects in each lab.

The Project

Environmental issues are currently among the most pressing facing humankind. As such, understanding how students learn about environmental science is of supreme importance. Students entering the science classroom bring well-developed intuitive frameworks that help them understand, explain, and predict the world around them. These frameworks, while beneficial in some contexts, may pose obstacles in environmental science education. This project explores how intuitive thinking plays a role in shaping student understanding of human-nature relationships and interactions within environmental science education. Specifically, we are investigating the impacts of a powerful intuitive conceptual framework – human exceptionalism, the belief that humans are separate from the natural world – upon an increasingly dominant paradigm in environmental science – social ecological systems, which acknowledges that human social systems are part of natural ecosystems. Specifically, we’re focusing on how students conceptualize marine social ecological systems, and approaching the question from a developmental perspective by investigating these processes in middle school, high school, and undergraduate students.

Responsibilities

  *   Collaboration as a team member on an NSF-funded study of relations between human exceptionalism and social-ecological systems thinking

  *   Project management

  *   Supervising and coordinating undergraduate research assistants

  *   Helping to mentor masters and doctoral students

  *   Designing experiments, collecting data, analyzing and writing papers for publication

  *   Pursuing independent research projects in conjunction with the focus of the labs

Requirements

  *   PhD in a field falling within the social, behavioral, cognitive, and/or environmental sciences.

  *   Experience with human subject research.

  *   Facility with statistical analyses such as structural equation modeling, multilevel modeling, and longitudinal analysis

  *   Demonstrated ability to successfully manage a complex project.

  *   Eagerness to work as a member of a cross-disciplinary research team.

Not Required but Preferred

  *   Experience mentoring undergraduate research assistants.

  *   Experience with coding qualitative data.

  *   Familiarity with mental modeling, fuzzy cognitive mapping, concept mapping, or some comparable research techniques.

  *   Some background in environmental or ecological sciences.

  *   Demonstrated ability to successfully carry out developmental research in a school setting.

Compensation

The position pays $60,000 in salary per year and includes health insurance and full benefits.

To Apply

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis starting immediately. Be prepared to submit the following materials to the link below:

  *   A current CV

  *   A Cover letter explaining

     *   Why you’re interested in the position,

     *   Relevant interests and experience,

     *   What you’re looking to get out of the experience, and

     *   What you think you could contribute to the team

  *   Up to three relevant publications

  *   Names of three references

https://northeastern.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/careers/job/Boston-MA-Main-Campus/Postdoctoral-Research-Associate--Cognitive-Foundations-of-Environmental-Science-Education_R134775
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