Research assistant in Political Science - Project about mobilizing bystander reactions to online political hostility

The Department of Political Science at Aarhus BSS, Aarhus University, invites applications for a fifteen months position as full-time research assistant, offering applicants an exciting opportunity to join the ERC Consolidator Grant project “Standing by: Pro-social Bystander Reactions to Online Political Hostility” (STANDBY) research team, and specifically work related to the development and dissemination of an intervention to mobilize pro-social bystander reactions to hostile content on social media.

The starting date is 1 October 2025 or subject to mutual agreement. The position is full time.
 

Job description

We invite applications for one position as research assistant for a period of fifteen months.

The successful candidate will be involved in all aspects of implementing the outlined workstream, including developing the intervention and the automated and targeted solution for its deployment online. The successful applicant will also be involved in designing and carrying out research tasks (interviews, feasibility studies, field experiment etc.) and in organizing collaboration with stakeholders (e.g. end-users, software developer). Furthermore, the successful applicant will be involved in writing up research evidence and applications for further funding.

The successful applicant will be employed as part of a research group consisting of Professor Lasse Lindekilde (project leader/principal investigator), three assistant professors/postdoctoral candidates and several research assistants. Research will primarily be carried out collaboratively with other project members, while the successful applicant will oversee certain work streams.
 

The research project

Online political hostility, such as online hate speech, constitutes a challenge to democracy through negative effects on political participation. To combat online hostility, social media platforms and providers of comment sections, e.g. online news media, invest significantly in moderating content via automated detection and take-downs as well as flag-and-delete procedures. However, the sheer number of posts and comments that need moderation often far exceed what is feasible to handle.

The apparent inability of top-down content moderation to tackle online hostility on social media calls for consideration of alternative strategies. One strategy is to turn attention to further user engagement in moderation, i.e. mobilizing users to report hostile content by other lay authors, but also to engage in counter-speech. Sadly, research suggests that only in 10-30% of cases of online hostility do bystanders intervene and take action to help victims or express disapproval. The challenge to political participation and democratic deliberation posed by online hostility is amplified by this widespread apathy among bystanders. This is regrettable, as research suggests that pro-social bystander reactions can be effective in countering online hostility and improve the quality of online deliberation.

To realize the potential of pro-social bystander reactions to online hostility, we need to overcome the tendency for bystander apathy in situations of online hostility. We must promote a behavioral change away from the current norm of passivity by encouraging pro-social bystander reactions through interventions providing guidance and motivation. Building on an extensive behavioral analysis of bystander behavior in response to online hostility conducted within the ERC-CoG STANDBY-project, we have developed and tested a guidance message – the ‘Speak up, Report, Support’ intervention – which has proven effective in mobilizing pro-social bystander reactions to online hostility.

The aim of this new stream of work is to improve this intervention, field test the intervention at scale, and build an automated solution targeting the intervention real-time in comment sections on social media where online hostility is detected to be used by media corporations struggling to moderate user-generated online content.

The project is led by Professor Lasse Lindekilde and funded by an ERC Consolidator Grant. The overall STANDBY-project website can be found here.
 

Your qualifications

Applicants are expected to hold a degree in political science, communication, (social) psychology, sociology or cognitive science. In addition to an interest in conducting collaborative research within the focus area of the project, all applicants should demonstrate some knowledge of social media research and social media algorithms, experience with research funding applications, designing experiments, and have an excellent command of spoken and written English. Experience with website development and/or maintenance is an advantage.  

Interested applicants should submit an application letter (2-3 pages) motivating why the applicant is interested in being part of the STANDBY-project and how the applicant can contribute to the success of the project. Beyond the application letter, the application should contain a CV, relevant diplomas, and transcripts of grades. Selected candidates will be asked to come for an interview.

Who we are

The Department of Political Science is one of the six departments at Aarhus BSS, one of the five faculties at Aarhus University. Aarhus BSS unites the business and social science-related research fields and brings them closer together to reflect the close relationship between society and the business community. As part of a Top 100 university, Aarhus BSS – and specifically the Department of Political Science – has achieved the distinguished AASCB, AMBA and EQUIS accreditations.

At the Department of Political Science, we emphasise a dynamic and flexible research and teaching profile characterised by pluralism and openness. With around 90 academic staff members and 40 PhD students, we offer a lively and ambitious research and teaching environment.

The research carried out at the department not only covers a variety of political science disciplines, but also represents a variety of methodological approaches. This not only enables us to focus on new problem areas as they appear on the national and international political arenas, but also allows us to contribute actively to the development of the discipline. We also emphasise communicating our research results to the political-administrative system and to the public in general.

For more information about the Department of Political Science, please see here.

Further information

Application deadline: 22 August 2025

If you have any questions about the position, please contact Professor Lasse Lindekilde, lindekilde@ps.au.dk, prior to submitting their application to learn more about the position and the research project.

If you need help uploading your application or have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact HR supporter Line Kristiansen, lmkr@au.dk

Place of work

Department of Political Science, Bartholins Allé 7, DK - 8000 Aarhus C.

• Publications. Up to three publications may be submitted. In the event of several authors the publications must be accompanied by a co-author statement concerning the applicant's share of the collaborative work with the consent of the co-authors. This template may be used for the purpose.
• Teaching portfolio. The specific requirements regarding the documentation can be found here

Materials which cannot be uploaded together with the application may be submitted in three copies to Aarhus BSS HR & PhD, Aarhus University, Bartholins Allé 16, DK-8000 Aarhus C.

Read more about how to apply for an academic post at Aarhus BSS here

The evaluation process

After the application deadline, an assessment committee is appointed. Please note that the assessment of applicants is based solely on the material received prior to the application deadline. For further information, see Guidelines for Assessment Committee, Aarhus BSS.
The application must be submitted via Aarhus University’s recruitment system, which can be accessed under the job advertisement on Aarhus University's website.
 

Aarhus University

Aarhus University is an academically diverse and research-intensive university with a strong commitment to high-quality research and education and the development of society nationally and globally. The university offers an inspiring research and teaching environment to its 38,000 students (FTEs) and 8,300 employees, and has an annual revenues of EUR 935 million. Learn more at www.international.au.dk/