Doctoral Researcher (m/f/d) (PhD)

The Gamification & Digital Customer Engagement research group (headed by Prof. Dr. Benedikt Morschheuser) at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) focuses on understanding game-related technologies, trends, and phenomena such as gamification, AR, VR, the ‘metaverse’, or eSports. A specific target of our research is generating novel design knowledge for the successful design of gamified information systems and the empirical investigation of the psychological and behavioural outcomes of gamification. Our research is interdisciplinary and originates at the intersection of psychology, design, computer science, economics, education, and data science. Our office is located at the city center of Nuremberg, where we offer a start-up-like working atmosphere in a friendly team with flat hierarchies and direct communication. We provide you with individual guidance for your doctorate and offer rich support for building up a network in academia and industry.

What are you working on?

• The name of the project(s): design and investigation of gamification solutions for performance diagnostics and training in team sports
• At what stage of the project(s)? Research project
• Genres: Sports
• Platforms: Mobile

Team size and structure?

small

For which tasks (responsibilities)?

In cooperation with adidas AG, we design and investigate gameful approaches for optimizing performance diagnostics and training in team sports by using an existing adidas platform. As part of this project, you will collect user requirements from different target groups (e.g., athletes, coaches), develop app- / web- / AR-based gamification approaches and investigate their psychological and behavioral outcomes. The work is mainly composed of research activities, including research planning, prototype development, data gathering, data analysis, presentation, and dissemination of research results. Further, you will be involved in administrative and educational tasks of the research group, such as supervising of students.

What kind of professional are we looking for?

• University degree (diploma / M.Sc.) with a background in information systems, (sports) psychology, game design, business engineering, computer science, human-computer interaction, or related disciplines

• Ability to independently develop gamification prototypes based on practical experiences in web-/ app design, UX, as well as agile software engineering

• A high degree of responsibility, determination, creativity, perseverance, and a pioneering spirit

• Enthusiasm for a career in research combined with a profound interest in gamification, and human-computer interaction

• Proficient spoken and written command of English
  

Advantageous qualifications and requirements

• Ability to communicate complex ideas, concepts and information in an easy-to-understand manner

• Experience in conducting empirical research and academic article writing is advantageous

• Understanding and experience in design driven methodologies (research through design, participatory design, co-design, design science)

• Ability to develop working backend systems with Java, PhP, Python or a comparable programming language

• Enthusiasm for team sports, especially football