Alexander Wuttke

A PhD position is available at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU Munich) in the BIDT-funded research project DemocraGPT. The project aims to develop and rigorously evaluate an AI-based conversation training designed to reduce polarization and support constructive democratic dialogue, even under conditions of political disagreement. The PhD researcher will play a central role in the field-experimental evaluation of the intervention, including designing and analyzing a large-scale randomized panel study with approximately 800 participants, evaluating both short- and long-term effects of AI-supported political conversations, and working with repeated-measures data, causal inference, and experimental methods. The position emphasizes quantitative analysis, with proficiency in R required and Python considered a plus. The successful candidate will join a high-profile, interdisciplinary consortium with close collaboration across political science, communication research, and AI, involving both LMU and TUM. The position offers strong support for an independent dissertation project, clear prospects for international publications, and a salary according to TV-L E13 (75%) with full employee benefits. The research environment in Munich is excellent, providing a high quality of life. Applicants should have an MA or MSc in political science, communication studies, psychology, or related fields, with a strong background or interest in quantitative and experimental methods. Proficiency in both German and English is required. The project welcomes candidates interested in democracy, polarization, and political communication, and strongly encourages applications from women and members of underrepresented groups. The application deadline is January 31, 2026, with applications reviewed on a rolling basis. To apply, send your CV, a writing sample, and a brief cover letter to Professor Alexander Wuttke at [email protected]. For further information, candidates are encouraged to reach out directly.

LMU Munich’s Unit Digitalization and Political Behavior and the Geschwister-Scholl Institute for Political Science are advertising a PhD Researcher position focused on computational text analysis , democratic belief systems , political psychology , persuasion research , and large language models . The project sits at the intersection of political science, psychology, and computational social science. The position connects two DFG-funded projects: Democratic Persuasion: How to Make the Case for Democracy and the Emmy Noether group Predictably Paradoxical: Mapping the Democratic Mind with AI . Research activities include survey experiments, LLM-based persuasive conversations, framed field experiments, AI conversational interviewing, and large-scale text data analysis. The dissertation topic is framed as Computational Text Analysis for Mapping Democratic Belief Systems , with room to shape the specific focus within that area. This is a 75% TV-L E13 PhD researcher contract for 4 years , starting January 1, 2027 or as soon as possible . The ad states an approximate gross salary of €44,000 to €47,000 per year depending on prior experience, and mentions the possibility of extension. The work is based at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München in Munich, Germany . Applicants should have a completed or near-completed M.A./M.Sc. in the social sciences, psychology, computer science, computational linguistics, or a related field. Useful skills include Python, experience with LLMs, text-as-data methods, NLP, and quantitative methodology including experimental designs. Interest in political psychology, persuasion, belief systems, or democratic attitudes is preferred. Strong organization, reliability, and good English communication are expected; German is an advantage. To apply, send complete application documents, a writing sample, and a cover letter to [email protected] . Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, and the final deadline is 2026-10-20 . Zoom interviews begin in October 2026, and a later stage may include a work sample and in-person interview at LMU Munich.