Postdoctoral Researcher in Multimodal Motion Capture and Spatiotemporal Modelling of Language Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Spain

Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), through the Prosodic and Gestural Studies Research Group (GrEPG) in the Department of Translation and Language Sciences, invites applications for a fully funded 4-year postdoctoral position within the ERC Advanced Grant PROSODY-SENSES led by Prof. Pilar Prieto.

This postdoctoral opportunity, PD1: SpatioTemporal Coordination across Sensory Modalities in Spoken Language, focuses on how prosodic structure is implemented across spoken, sign, and tactile sign languages. The project aims to test a reconceptualization of prosody as a modality-neutral component of language that governs spoken, visual, and tactile signals while preserving linguistic function across sensory channels.

The successful candidate will lead comparative research on prosodic structure across spoken, visual, and tactile modalities and contribute to the development of the Modality-Neutral Prosodic Framework (MNPF). The role includes designing and conducting experimental studies, developing computational and statistical models, and working with multimodal datasets that integrate speech, bodily movement, audiovisual recording, tactile interaction, and linguistic annotation.

Main duties include leading an independent research programme within the PROSODY-SENSES framework, publishing in leading international journals, presenting at conferences, developing interdisciplinary collaborations, co-supervising PhD students, contributing to multimodal production experiments, optimizing motion-capture and tactile recording workflows, creating annotation protocols and reproducible analytical pipelines, supporting research data management, and contributing to scientific coordination, workshops, training, outreach, and dissemination.

The position is especially suited to researchers with strong expertise in three-dimensional motion capture, quantitative behavioural analysis, computational modelling, programming, reproducible workflows, and multimodal communication research. Experience with computer vision, machine learning, audiovisual annotation tools, speech analysis, experimental phonetics, and student supervision is welcome.

Applicants must hold a PhD in a relevant discipline such as linguistics, cognitive science, computer science, biomechanics, computational neuroscience, speech science, psychology, AI, or biomedical engineering. They should also demonstrate excellent English and the ability to work in an interdisciplinary, international team. The selection process emphasizes academic excellence, relevant methodological experience, doctoral and publication quality, fit with the project, and additional merits.

The position is based at UPF in Barcelona, Spain, and is offered as a full-time temporary contract. The application deadline is 18 December 2026 at 23:59 (Europe/Madrid). Applications must be submitted via Interfolio.