PhD Position on the Effects of Incorporation of Emotion-Sensitive A.I. on Politics and Policymaking

PhD position on the effects of incorporation of emotion-sensitive A.I. on politics and policymaking

We are looking for a PhD candidate to be part of theA.I. Feels interdisciplinary research project.A.I. Feels investigates how the use of emotion-sensitive A.I. chatbots by key politicians and civil servants affects policymaking. The project studies this using different disciplinary perspectives, including political psychology, political communication, human-machine communication, interpretative approaches and the political sociology of emotions.

As AI chatbots become increasibly capable of expressing and recognizing emotions and emotional appeals, a crucial question arises: how do they communicate emotions on politically relevant issues and what implications does this have for policymaking and democracy? To answer this question, the PhD candidate will work on the A.I.Feels sub-project 1 (SP1) aimed at investigating how emotions are expressed in output generated by chatbots in response to prompts relevant for policymakers. The PhD candidate will investigate how output generated by prompts typically used by politicians and civil servants displays emotional appeals and emotional cues. The PhD candidate is expected to be open to combine both positivist and non-positivist approaches under the supervision of Carolin Ischen and Gijs Schumacher, both specialized in large-scale quantitative analysis and experimental research and Rosa Sanchez Salgado, specialized in interpretivist and constructivist approaches.

What are you going to do

• You will complete a PhD dissertation based on scientific articles, to be submitted to leading academic journals. Some of these articles will be in collaboration with other team members;
• You will assist with administrative responsibilities related to the project, such as the (national and international) activities of the project, including scientific conferences and networks as well as expert meetings with policy makers and stakeholders;
• You will contribute to the teaching program of the department;
• You will take active part in seminars of the research program group, the department and the Hot Politics Lab;
• Your primary residence will be within commuting distance of the University of Amsterdam for the duration of the PhD project.

What do you have to offer

We are looking for a PhD candidate with the following experience and profile:

• a completed MA or Research MA in political science, psychology, communication science, computational social sciences, sociology, or one of the related social sciences;
• Knowledge of topics related to emotions and A.I. and training in quantitative and qualitative research methods (e.g. large-scale quantitative analysis, emotion detection), and a willingness to develop additional theoretical and methodological expertise;
• good research skills, as demonstrated by MA thesis or other publications/assignments;
• excellent command of English;
• the ability to work independently as well as part of a team.

What else do we offer you

The position concerns temporary employment of 38 hours per week for a maximum term of four years. The initial employment is for one year. The intended starting date is 1rst January 2027. Following a positive assessment, this term will be extended by a maximum of three years, which should result in the conferral of a doctorate.

You will attend courses offered by the AISSR and the Graduate School of Social Sciences as part of the PhD program. In addition to doing research, publicizing your findings, and participating in both national and international academic events, you will be involved in teaching (roughly 10% of your time).

• Based on a full-time appointment (38 hours per week) the gross monthly salary will range from €3,204 in the first year to €4,051 (scale P) in the last year. The UFO profile PhD candidate is applicable.
• Salary and conditions in line with the Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities.

We additionally offer an extensive package of secondary benefits, including 8% holiday allowance and a year-end bonus of 8.3%.

The UvA offers excellent possibilities for further professional development and education.

In this institute, you will work

The University of Amsterdam is the largest university in the Netherlands, with the broadest spectrum of degree programmes. It is an intellectual hub with 39,000 students, 6,000 employees and 3,000 doctoral students who are all committed to a culture of inquiring minds.The social and behavioural sciences play a leading role in addressing the major societal challenges faced by the world, the Netherlands and Amsterdam, now and in the future.

As UvA employee, you become part of an organization that is deeply committed to diversity and inclusion. The UvA aims to be a university where everyone feels respected and at home, with diversity and inclusion as key values. We hope you will be a fantastic addition to our community. We also value a spirit of enquiry and perseverance, provide the space to keep asking questions, and promote a culture of curiosity and creativity.
Want to know more about our organisation? Read more about working at the University of Amsterdam

We are looking for a PhD candidate to be part of theA.I. Feels interdisciplinary research project.A.I. Feels investigates how the use of emotion-sensitive A.I. chatbots by key politicians and civil servants affects policymaking. The project studies this using different disciplinary perspectives, including political psychology, political communication, human-machine communication, interpretative approaches and the political sociology of emotions.

In this institute, you will work

The University of Amsterdam is the largest university in the Netherlands, with the broadest spectrum of degree programmes. It is an intellectual hub with 39,000 students, 6,000 employees and 3,000 doctoral students who are all committed to a culture of inquiring minds.The social and behavioural sciences play a leading role in addressing the major societal challenges faced by the world, the Netherlands and Amsterdam, now and in the future.

As UvA employee, you become part of an organization that is deeply committed to diversity and inclusion. The UvA aims to be a university where everyone feels respected and at home, with diversity and inclusion as key values. We hope you will be a fantastic addition to our community. We also value a spirit of enquiry and perseverance, provide the space to keep asking questions, and promote a culture of curiosity and creativity.
Want to know more about our organisation? Read more about working at the University of Amsterdam

Do you recognize yourself in the job profile? Then we look forward to receiving your application by 30 September 2026. Interviews with candidates will take place at the end of October or the beginning of November.You may apply online by using the link below.

Applications in pdf should include:

• a curriculum vitae (max 3 pages);
• a letter of motivation (max 2 pages), outlining how you would investigate the ways emotions are expressed in LLM-generated outputs intended for policymakers;
• a writing sample such as part of a master thesis or a publication (in case of a publication with multiple authors, please indicate which parts you wrote).

When uploading your application, upload the different documents separately (in 2 pdf files).

Do you have any questions or do you require additional information? Please contact:

• Dr. Rosa Sanchez Salgado (Political Science), r.m.sanchez@uva.nl
• Dr. Carolin Ischen (Communication Science) c.ischen@uva.nl