The School of Communication and Culture, Aarhus University, invites applications for a two-year postdoctoral fellowship in language variation and change. This is a full-time position and begins on 1 January 2019 or as soon as possible thereafter. It is associated with the research project “Ageing in Language Variation and Change”, supported by an Aarhus University Research Foundation (Aarhus Universitets Forskningsfond (AUFF)) Starting Grant. The position is based at the Department of English, which is part of the School of Communication and Culture.

The successful applicant will be a member of the research group Sounds of Language and Speech (for more information about the group and our phonetics lab, see:https://soundsoflanguageandspeech.wordpress.com/.

The project is coordinated by Michaela Hejná at the Department of English, and will run from January 2019 until December 2020.

Aims of the postdoc research project

Within the field of language variation and change, age is often approached as a social variable (social age), as well as being placed on a par with chronological age (as opposed to biological age). This is the general tendency, despite the multifaceted characteristics of age (e.g. Eckert 1997). So the first aim of the postdoc research project is to develop the appropriate methodology to conduct linguistic research that considers social age as the key variable, as opposed to chronological age.

Most likely because biological age is difficult to determine without obtaining biological data, the role of biological ageing on language variation and change has not received as much attention as, for example, biological sex (vis-à-vis social gender identity). The second aim of the postdoc position is to contrast biological and chronological age and establish whether the former has any effects on selected laryngeal phenomena. This will include collection and analyses of production data as well as collection of the speakers’ biomarkers (in collaboration with Gillian Pepper and Daniel Nettle, Centre of Behaviour and Evolution, Newcastle University, UK). The project will enable us to establish not only whether biological ageing is a factor relevant for at least some consonantal and vocalic changes, but also what the magnitude of this potential effect may be.

Qualifications
Eligible applicants for this position should hold a PhD degree or equivalent qualifications. Applicants must document the ability to conduct research using acoustic analyses within the field of phonetics and/or language variation and change (LVC). Candidates are expected to master the statistical methods used in phonetics and LVC. Experience of R is required. Experience of using articulatory equipment will be considered an advantage. Very good command of academic English in oral and written communication is required. Applicants should be interested in collaborative, interdisciplinary work. Applicants should also submit a description of one or two research projects in which the applicant has been involved, showcasing the type of questions and methodological approaches of which the applicant has experience (the applicant’s PhD project, for example). The description should be no more than three pages long.

Read the full job description and apply online here.

Application deadline: 31/7/2018.