Two-Year Postdoctoral Fellowship in Mobile Search Behaviour

Website ohoeber Department of Computer Science, University of Regina

Position Summary

The successful postdoctoral fellow will work under the direction of Dr. Orland Hoeber to conduct a series of studies to measure and mitigate the impacts of interruptions on mobile search behaviour. The foundations for this research program were established in an article that was recently published in JASIST:

Orland Hoeber, Morgan Harvey, Shaheed Ahmed Dewan Sagar, Matthew Pointon. 2022. The effects of simulated interruptions on mobile search tasks. Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology 73, 6 (2022), 777-796. https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.24579.

The follow-up research, supported by the postdoctoral fellow, will include the replication of the above study with realistic interruptions and tasks, diary studies of mobile search behaviour, and the design, implementation, and study of novel mobile search interface features that mitigate the effects of interruptions. There is some flexibility in the research program which will allow us to tune the projects to the skills and interests of the postdoctoral fellow, and for them to specify other related projects to pursue. Those also interested in exploratory search are encouraged to apply.

While the postdoctoral fellow will work within Dr. Hoeber’s research group in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Regina (Canada), this research program is being conducted in collaboration with Dr. Morgan Harvey in the Information School at the University of Sheffield (UK) and his research group.

In order to give the postdoctoral fellow medium-term stability, the appointment of this position will be for two years, with the ability to renew the appointment for a third year based on performance. The postdoctoral fellow will spend 80% of their time on duties associated with this position, with the remaining 20% (one day per week) dedicated to other research-oriented “passion projects”, following Google’s “20 percent time” philosophy.

In order to assist the postdoctoral fellow with their academic career development, the fellow will be assigned to teach one graduate-level course in the area of Human-Centred Computing each year of the appointment. The specific topic and details of the course will be based on the postdoctoral fellow’s expertise and skillset, and will be developed and delivered under the guidance of Dr. Orland Hoeber.

Position Requirements

  • Ph.D. in Computer Science, Information Science, or a closely related discipline, and with a specialization in Human-Computer Interaction or Interactive Information Retrieval
  • Excellent interpersonal and leadership skills
  • Proven ability to work within a research team as well as independently
  • Excellent oral and written communication skills in English
  • Experience in conducting human-centred research (e.g., conducting literature reviews, developing research questions and hypotheses, designing user studies, preparing research ethics applications, collecting qualitative or quantitative data, analyzing qualitative or quantitative data, disseminating research results)
  • Experience in the dissemination of the outcomes of research, with a record of at least one research publication/presentation at CHIIR, SIGIR, MobileCHI, CHI, IUI, or similar conference
  • Previous research that included the design and implementation of search interfaces is an asset
  • Previous research using mixed-methods is an asset
  • Previous experience in the design and implementation of mobile or web-based software is an asset

Work Hours, Holidays, and other Work Conditions

As per CUPE Local 5791 (Research Employees) collective agreement (https://5791.cupe.ca/files/2020/04/2020-2023-CUPE-5791-Research-Employees-Collective-Agreement-tvh.pdf)

Salary and Benefits

$54,000 annually plus benefits as per CUPE Local 5791

Support will be provided to attend at least one major academic conference annually to present the outcomes of this research to the academic community and to develop the postdoctoral fellow’s academic network.

Start Date

The expected start date is January 1, 2023, but this is flexible (+/- up to two months).

Application Process

Candidates for this position should provide the following information: a cover letter that addresses the specific items in the position requirements, their CV, the transcripts from their Ph.D. and Master’s degrees, and a sample research publication. Reference letters will be requested once the candidates are short-listed.

All of this information should be packaged together in a zip file, uploaded to a cloud-based file repository, and the link emailed to orland.hoeber@uregina.ca. Please use the following in the subject line: “mobile search behaviour postdoc application”. Applications will be reviewed as they arrive, and interviews will be arranged for promising candidates as soon as possible. The position will remain open until filled.

Inquiries about this position may be made via email to orland.hoeber@uregina.ca.

Diversity Statement

The University of Regina is committed to an inclusive workplace that reflects the richness of the community that we serve. The University welcomes applications from all qualified individuals, including individuals within the University’s employment equity categories of women, persons with disabilities, members of visible minorities, Indigenous persons, individuals of diverse gender and sexual orientation and all groups protected by the Human Rights Code.

 

To apply for this job email your details to orland.hoeber@uregina.ca

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