About the position

Inland School of Business and Social Sciences, The PhD program Innovation in Services in the Public and Private Sectors (INSEPP), invites candidates to apply for a 3-year PhD research fellowship to work with the broad field of innovation studies with particular focus on the applications, benefits, and risks of AI use in organizations. Depending on the need of the department and the potential candidate, arrangement could be made for a 4-year programme with 25 percent teaching duties.

The purpose of the PhD Research Fellowship for the admitted candidate is to undergo a research training programme that leads to the successful completion of a doctoral degree. Admission to the PhD programme is a prerequisite for employment. The candidate is expected to participate actively in INSEPP’s activities. After commencement, the candidate must apply for admission to the PhD programme within three months. An agreement for admission to the PhD programme must be in place within six months after commencement.

The candidate will be part of the Department of Psychology and the research group OASIS. In addition to INSEPP, these environments represent a valuable resource for PhD studies.

The workplace is Campus Lillehammer.

About the project

Organizational use of artificial intelligence – applications, benefits, and risks

Since the launch of ChatGPT in autumn 2022, large language models (LLMs) have started to gradually spread to both educational institutions as well as public and private companies. There are discussions whether AI and LLMs will contribute to development of knowledge, science and productivity, or whether on the contrary it will aggravate the trend of digital dementia, associated with Internet use and characterized by memory and attention problems impairing cognitive performance. Both qualitative and quantitative methods will be employed in the project, as well as other relevant theoretical and empirical tools. 

We are seeking a candidate with particular interest in studying the perception of AI, its usage, as well as merits and demerits that are associated with the inclusion of AI in everyday work life. Examples of study topics can be: 1) AI’s impact on performance of the company – current status and beyond. e. 2) Personality differences and differences in quality of performance of workers who use and do not use AI. We select branches that already have extensive use of AI technology, to look at differences in performance, self-efficacy, digital literacy and personality differences among users and non-users. 3) Impacts of long-term AI use on cognitive abilities (concentration, memory, creativity etc.)

We are looking for candidates that are highly motivated for research in the field of Organizational psychology/social Psychology/Cognitive Psychology.

This project will be connected to the OASIS research group, and as research group leader, professor Jonas Rennemo Vaag will manage group activities and assist associate professors Petra Filkukova and Oyeniyi Samuel Olaniyan in their shared main supervision of the candidate throughout the project.

Qualifications

The appointed candidate must qualify for admission to the university's PhD programme Innovation in Services in the Public and Private Sectors (INSEPP). 
 
You must have the following qualifications:

• A master's degree in psychology or other relevant field.
• The master's degree must normally constitute 120 ECTS credits, including a master's thesis of at least 30 ECTS credits.
• A strong academic background from your previous studies. The average grade should normally be B or better from the master's program or equivalent education.

If you have an education from abroad, please attach documentation of recognition of foreign higher education from the Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills. If the requested documentation is not possible to obtain within the application deadline, an equivalent assessment can be made by INN University in connection with the recruitment process.

Furthermore, emphasis will be placed on the applicant's:

• Academic and personal qualifications to complete doctoral education within the employment period.
• Ability to work independently and purposefully, as well as to collaborate on research, publishing and teaching tasks.
• Experience with article publication will be an advantage.
• Knowledge of quantitative and qualitative research methods.
• Being structured and having a high work capacity.
• Demonstrating solid theoretical insight and interest.

 Language:

• Good proficiency in English, both oral and written. Applicants from non-English speaking countries must document their English proficiency in accordance with the Supplementary Regulations for Admission to the PhD Programme at INN University. 
• Applicants who cannot document skills in Norwegian, Swedish or Danish at level A2 upon employment must complete training corresponding to at least 15 credits during the fellowship period.

In the evaluation and ranking of qualified applicants, emphasis will be placed on:

• The quality of the project proposal
• Documented independent research and development work or experience relevant to the project

 It is mandatory to attach a project proposal of 2000 words (see the section on "How to Apply" below).

The assessment of which candidate is best qualified will be a comprehensive evaluation of education, experience, and personal suitability, as well as motivation and other qualification requirements as formulated in the job advertisement.

The position and associated tasks must be carried out in accordance with the applicable laws and regulations for government employees, including also the Act on Control of the Export of Strategic Goods, Services and Technology, etc. Candidates who, after assessment of the application and attachments, come into conflict with the criteria in the latter act, will not be able to take up the position at University of Inland Norway. Necessary approvals must be maintained throughout the employment relationship.

How to apply

Relevant applications will be considered by an expert committee. The application and all attachments are to be submitted electronically and should include the following:

• The applicant must submit a project proposal with a progress plan (in Norwegian or English, 2000 words) that explains how the research work will be carried out and addresses academic relevance, challenges and possibilities within the project. The project proposal should also outline the theories and methods intended to be used. The project proposal plays an important role in evaluating applicants and must demonstrate how the project will lead to the successful completion of a doctoral degree within three/four years. The PhD research fellow hired will, in collaboration with a supervisor, prepare a complete project proposal that will form the basis for admission to the PhD program.
   
• Application letter with a brief overview of the applicant's research interests and motivation for applying for the position.
• CV (summarizing education, job positions, and academic work)
• Certified copies of transcripts and diplomas. An English translation of all education documents is required unless the documents are in Norwegian.
• Other work that is relevant for the application
• Names and contact information of at least 2 reference persons.
• A copy of the master thesis (in PDF)

Attachments must be uploaded as separate files. If the attachments exceed 30 MB, they must be compressed prior to upload. It is the applicant's responsibility to ensure that all attachments are uploaded. Documents submitted after expiry of the deadline will not be considered in the evaluation of your application.

We offer

• An academically stimulating and supportive work environment at a developing institution.
• Possibility of professional development in an exciting academic research environment.
• Position is paid and placed in position code 1017, PhD candidate in the Government Salary Scale.
• Membership in the Norwegian Public Service Pension, with among other things, good pension and insurance schemes.

For more information about INN University as an employer, please see here.

General information

INN believes that there is strength in inclusion and diversity. We desire employees with different competencies, professional combinations, life experiences and perspectives to contribute to an even better way of solving problems. We will facilitate for employees who need assitance to realise their goals. Relevant adaptations can be, for example, technical aids, adapting furniture or adjusting routines, work tasks and working hours.

If there are qualified applicants with disabilities, gaps in the CV or immigrant background, we shall call at least one applicant in each of these categories for an interview. In order to be considered as an applicant in these groups, the applicants must meet certain requirements. You can read more on this here: https://arbeidsgiver.difi.no/positivsaerbehandling.

We encourage applicants to tick in Jobbnorge if they have a disability, a gap in their CV or immigrant background. The ticks in the jobseeker portal form the basis for anonymised statistics that all state-owned enterprises report in their annual reports

Information about applicants may be made public even if the applicant has asked not to be named on the list of persons who have applied. The applicant must be notified if the request to be omitted is not met.