We invite expressions of interest for two forthcoming postdoctoral positions, 1 at the Department of Psychology – University of Milano-Bicocca (supervisor: Simone Sulpizio), and 1 at the Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science – University of Trento (supervisor: Michele Scaltritti).

Both positions will be supported by a recently funded project entitled “FundDeMYO – Functional characterization of decisional components in motor responses for young and older adults” (Italian Ministry of University and Research). The project focuses on the investigation of the decisional component that affect motor-response execution during binary decision making, in an effort to better understand the boundaries between cognition and action. The project will make extensive use of linguistic stimuli and tasks (lexical decision), comparisons across different populations (young vs older adults) and will mainly rely on behavioural and electromyographic (EMG) measures.  

The ideal candidates have a PhD in psychology, cognitive (neuro)science, and related disciplines, as well as a substantial experience with laboratory psychology experiments (design, data collection, analyses). Previous experience with physiological data, psycholinguistic and aging research are a plus, but not strictly required. To facilitate communication with older adults, a working knowledge of Italian (level B2) would be an asset, and the ideal candidate should be at least willing to acquire it by the beginning of the second year.

We offer a competitive salary and we make it a priority to support a good work-life balance as well as a friendly and inclusive research environment. 

Expressions of interest should be submitted via email to simone.sulpizio@unimib.it or michele.scaltritti@unitn.it and include:

•   a CV

•   names and contacts of one or two references

Informal inquiries are welcomed.

Please note that this is just an informal call for expressions of interest. Positions will be subject to a formal hiring procedure, in compliance with national and institutional requirements.

Duration: 24 months

Tentative starting date: January 2024 at the University of Trento, and February 2024 at the University of Milano-Bicocca

The Department of Psychology at UniMiB

The Department is extremely young (it was established in 1999) and yet presents a great tradition The Department combines basic and applied research, building on effective interactions between various disciplines, which all contribute to the knowledge of mind. Today is one of Italy’s most prestigious and high-ranked departments of psychology, as well as being the largest, with its current 79 faculty members, dozens of doctoral students and postdoctoral fellows, and over 20 research laboratories. Contact: simone.sulpizio@unimib.it

The Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science at UNITN

The Department offers a great research environment, and has been recently ranked among the top Psychology Department of Italy. It provides state-of-the-art facilities (multiple labs, 2 EEG systems, eye-trackers, and multiple devices for acquiring physiological data), a multidisciplinary perspective on the study of the mind and cognition, as well as warm and friendly working environment. The Department is located in Rovereto, a smaller but well-connected town (15 mins from Trento by train) with a remarkable quality of life. Contact: michele.scaltritti@unitn.it

Representative publications:

Scaltritti, M., Greatti, E., & Sulpizio, S. (2023). Electrophysiological evidence of discontinuities in the propagation of lexical decision processes across the motor hierarchy. Neuropsychologia188, 108630.

Scaltritti, M., Giacomoni, F., Job, R., & Sulpizio, S. (2023). Redefining the decisional components of motor responses: Evidence from lexical and object decision tasks. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 49(6), 835-851.

Scaltritti, M., Job, R., Alario, F. X., & Sulpizio, S. (2020). On the boundaries between decision and action: Effector-selective lateralization of beta-frequency power is modulated by the lexical frequency of printed words. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience32(11), 2131-2144.