PhD Position on the Topic of “Age(ing) and Technology in Working Environments”

At the Professorship for Business and Organizational Psychology (Prof. Dr. Ulrike Fasbender), a doctoral position (amounting to 75% of a TV-L 13, full-time employment) on the topic of “Age(ing) and Technology in Working Environments” is to be filled by October 1, 2025. The position is initially limited to 3 years with the possibility of extension for a further 2 years.

What we offer:

• Appreciative communication and cooperative spirit
• Excellent learning and development opportunities
• Scope for creativity, own ideas, and self-initiative in research and teaching
• Supervision and developmental feedback in writing scientific publications, regular visits to national and international conferences, the opportunity to establish your professional network, the possibility of a research stay abroad as well as the lively exchange with other national and international leading teams in the field of work and organizational psychology

Tasks: In addition to your scientific qualification and the typical university didactic qualification, your tasks include scientific services in research and teaching, in particular:

• Teaching tasks in accordance with the university's teaching scheme
• Planning and implementation of empirical studies in the field of work and organizational psychology (primarily on the topic of “Age(ing) and Technology in Working Environments”, further topics possible)
• Statistical data analysis (e.g. with SPSS, Mplus, or R)
• Literature research and preparation
• Participation in the acquisition of new research projects and funds
• Presentation of research results at national and international conferences
• Publication of research results in international scientific journals

Topics in work and organizational psychology:

#1: Sustainable Career Development over the Lifespan
#2: Workplace Relationships and Diversity Management
#3: Knowledge Transfer, Learning and Innovation in Organizations
#4: Organizational Behavior, Technology and Change

Required profile:

• Interest in the topic of age(ing) and technology (additional topics possible)
• Top-level master's degree in psychology, preferably with a focus on work, organizational or industrial psychology, social psychology, or developmental psychology
• Highly reliable, self-initiative, proactive, and independent way of working
• Proven knowledge of research methods and statistics as well as the willingness to undertake complex data analysis
• High-quality communication skills in German and English, and a wish to write scientific publications
• Secure MS Office skills (especially Word, Excel, and PowerPoint)

If you are interested or have any questions, please contact Prof. Dr. Ulrike Fasbender (ulrike.fasbender@uni-hohenheim.de). Your application (via the University of Hohenheim's job portal) should contain the following documents summarized as one PDF document:

• Letter of motivation
• Curriculum vitae (including a list of publications)
• Transcript of records/certificates (school degree, university degrees, possibly further)

Application deadline: February 28, 2025 

Link to the job portal of the University of Hohenheim: here

Note: If the application process has not been completed, it may be possible to apply after the application deadline. The interviews will take place in spring 2025. Applications from women are encouraged.

Age(ing) and Technology in Working Environments

In the wake of rapid technological progress and an ageing global workforce, the demands on the world of work are changing. Our project examines the interface between aging and technology use in organizations and builds on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and other relevant models.

Previous studies consider how age-related differences in motivation, skills and social support shape attitudes and use of technology (e.g. Fasbender et al., 2023). We consider a wide range of technologies, including modern collaboration tools (e.g. Microsoft Teams, Slack), digital learning platforms (e.g. Moodle, Coursera), ERP systems (e.g. SAP, Oracle), and especially artificial intelligence (AI), such as chatbots, decision support systems or automated data analysis.

In addition, the role of digital leadership and organizational structures is examined to reduce barriers and promote a positive connection between age and the effective use of technology. The aim is to develop innovative approaches for the use of modern technologies by an age-diverse workforce.

This project offers an exciting opportunity to work on a highly topical issue at the intersection of work psychology, digitalization and age(ing).

Literature as an introduction to the subject:

Fasbender, U., Gerpott, F. H., & Rinker, L. (2023). Getting ready for the future, is it worth it? A dual pathway model of age and technology acceptance at work. Work, Aging and Retirement, 9(4), 358–375. https://doi.org/10.1093/workar/waac035