Postdoc position at KITLV – KNAW for research project Cyber Troops in Southeast Asia

Postdoc position at KITLV – KNAW for research project Cyber Troops in Southeast Asia
Postdoc position at KITLV – KNAW for research project Cyber Troops in Southeast Asia

Published	Deadline	Location
yesterday	1 Nov	Leiden

An attractive position to explore a quite new field of research

Job description
Project Description
This research project studies comparatively how social media-based public opinion manipulation is organized in Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia. Computational propaganda is the coordinated and semi-automated dissemination of political disinformation by networks of hired social media influencers (‘cyber troops’). It constitutes a considerable threat for the quality of public debate and, consequently, democracy around the world. This threat is particularly pronounced in Southeast Asia. In this area, high social media penetration and low newspaper readership provide perfect conditions for ‘buzzers’ (Indonesia), ‘keyboard warriors’ (Philippines), or ‘trolls’ (Thailand) to manipulate public opinion by spreading political disinformation.
Addressing this urgent topic, this project will set up a unique interdisciplinary collaboration involving three KNAW institutes (KITLV, IISG and Meertens institute). Dutch and Southeast Asian researchers from computational science, social sciences and humanities will collaborate to further develop a multi-method approach that combines computational social media analysis, digital ethnography, and fieldwork. Cmputational social media analysis serves to study the scope, effectiveness and distribution of propaganda on Twitter. Digital ethnography will zoom in on the narrative and discursive strategies employed by cyber troops. Finally, interviews with ‘buzzers’ will serve to trace the organization, strategies, and political interests behind cyber troops.
The study focuses on three countries with comparable economies and social media usage. They are either backsliding democracies (Philippines and Indonesia) or reconsolidating autocracies (Thailand). The project employs this comparison to study the interaction between political regimes and computational propaganda. In doing so this project aims to generate new knowledge about an important and new phenomenon. It also encourages to strengthen public debates by producing academic and non-academic publications that raise public awareness about how cyber troops distort public debate.
Job Description
We are looking for a Postdoctoral candidate for this very innovative project. You will be based at KITLV and take care of the implementation of this project. You will do so together with project coordinators Ward Berenschot (Senior researcher at KITLV) and Yatun Sastramidjaja (Assistant Professor Anthropology at University of Amsterdam). Due to the funding of the project, the employment will be for two years, starting at the end of 2022.
You will train and supervise research teams in the Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia together with local partners, which will require several times of travel abroad. In each country we will cooperate with six field researchers for four months in the first year. In the second year, you will work together with a digital archivist at IISG for six months. During the project you will engage in computational social media analysis of key public debates, together with research partners in the Netherlands and the research countries. As a result, you will take care that publications are written and organize the dissemination of research findings.
Specifications

• 32—38 hours per week
• €2960—€3703 per month
• Leiden View on Google Maps

Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW)

Requirements
Requirements

• You have a PhD degree in social sciences and/or computational science. A thorough knowledge of and experience in studying politics and societies of South East Asian countries is desirable
• You have thorough knowledge and/or proven affinity of the functioning and use of social media and social media research
• You are capable in organizing and leading research projects with multiple researchers and collaborations
• You have a cooperative nature and very good verbal and written (intercultural) communication skills
• We expect a record of independent academic publication in a relevant field of research, commensurate with your career stage
• English language is a must, speaking the language of one of the research countries is a plus
• Preferable, you live and work in the Netherlands or you have the opportunity to do so: this makes it easier to communicate with the coordinators.

Conditions of employment

Fixed-term contract: 1 year with an option for a second year.

Conditions of Employment
KITLV is a KNAW institute. Appointment will be according to the terms of the Collective Labor Agreement of Dutch Universities (CAO Nederlandse Universiteiten). We offer a part time (0,84 fte) position (32 hours per week) for two years starting at the end of 2022. Based on the university system of job classification [universitair systeem functieordenen, or UFO], the position is classified as job profile Post-doctoral Researcher [Onderzoeker 4], The gross monthly salary will be based on experience and, due to the available budget, will be between € 2.960 and € 3.703, (in accordance with salary scale 10, of the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities), depending on your experience and qualifications. KNAW offers an attractive benefits package with additional holiday (8%) and end-of-year bonuses (8.3 %) and training and career development. Candidates from outside the Netherlands may be eligible for a substantial tax break.
The position is based at KITLV (www.kitlv.nl ) in Leiden, with visits to the region to conduct research. When travelling, your expenses – if reasonable – will be reimbursed. Leiden is a pleasant, historical city located between Amsterdam and The Hague. KITLV is committed to diversity, inclusiveness, and equal opportunities.
Employer
KITLV – KNAW
Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV)
The Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV-KNAW) is an Academy research institute. The KITLV conducts interdisciplinary and comparative historical research. Its research focus is Southeast Asia and the Caribbean, with an emphasis on Indonesia and the ‘Dutch’ Caribbean. It is particularly interested in such issues as state formation, violence and citizenship, processes of mobility and the formation of ethnic and national identity. KITLV is active in the humanities, social sciences and comparative area studies and works closely with Leiden University.
Additional information
Additional Information
For more information on this position or to obtain the full research proposal, go to https://www.kitlv.nl/cyber-troops-and-computational-propaganda-in-southeast-asia/ or send an e-mail to berenschot@kitlv.nl ).
Working at KNAW

The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) is the guardian and interpreter of science in the Netherlands.

More about the KNAW

Apply for this job
Apply for this job

This application process is managed by the employer (Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW)). Please contact the employer for questions regarding your application.

Apply for this job via the employer’s website
Thank you for applying

Please contact the employer for questions regarding your application.

Tip: save this job as favorite in your AcademicTransfer account. This gives you an immediate overview and makes it easy to find the job later on. No account yet? Create it now and take advantage of other useful functionalities too!

Back to the vacancy
Application procedure
Selection of candidates will be done by the project coordinators Ward Berenschot (Senior researcher at KITLV) and Yatun Sastramidjaja (Assistant Professor Anthropology at University of Amsterdam), together with Mr. Wijayanto, lecturer at Diponegoro University, Semarang, Indonesia, and director of Center for Media and Democracy, Jakarta, Indonesia and the HR-advisor of KITLV.