DFG Project in FOR 2790
PhD Student Position (m/w/d) in Cognitive Psychology at Trier University
(Action Control Research)

We seek a candidate for a doctoral student position at the Department of Cognitive
Psychology at the University of Trier (lab of C. Frings). The position (75% time) is ideally to
begin 1st of October, 2022 (or earlier if that is more feasible). The contract is limited to 3
years. Successful candidates can obtain a PhD in Psychology. The project is funded by the
DFG (German Research Council). The project is also part of the successfully renewed
Research Unit (Forschungsgruppe) Binding and Retrieval in Action Control that is located
at 8 different universities. PhD students will have the possibility to visit the other labs during
lab exchanges and will work in a team of more than 20 scientists – all working towards the
goal of a better understanding of the processes contributing to action control – and
connected via a virtual nextcloud-based laboratory.
The project is the Trier part of a double project with a postdoc working at Würzburg
University and a PhD student at Trier University. It will analyze the influence of errors within
an otherwise correct response sequence, on human action control; specifically on the
representation and execution of action sequences. With the results of this project, it will be
possible to specify the structure of event files – the centerpiece of the Binding and Retrieval
in Action Control framework. The research unit will provide an excellent environment for
acquiring important skills for an academic career – yet, these skills also qualify PhD
candidates for many positions outside of science.
Applicants should have an interest in action control research and error processing.
Experience with conducting experiments, knowledge of quantitative research methods, and
ideally, programming skills (e.g., R, Psychopy, EPrime) is helpful but not essential. A
university degree (master or diploma) in psychology as well as very good English skills are
required. Severely disabled persons and persons who are treated as equals in accordance
with Section 2 (3) of the German Social Code IX (SGB IX) will be given preferential
consideration if they are suitably qualified (please enclose proof). Applications should include
a cover letter describing research interests and a potential thesis project, curriculum vitae,
university transcripts. The preferred method of submission is PDF files e-mailed to the
responsible principal investigator (B. Moeller): moellerbuni-trierde

PD Dr. Birte Moeller
Cognitive Psychology (Chair: Prof. Frings)
University of Trier
Universitätsring 15
D-54296 Trier