PhD Position: Individual Dynamics of Fatigue

1. Introduction

Fatigue is universal, yet its individual dynamics remain poorly understood. Radboud University seeks a PhD candidate eager to explore this scientific challenge.

2. Job description

Your primary responsibilities will be to co-design, carry out, write up and present research on the experience of fatigue. Ultimately, this research will lead to several publications in psychological or multidisciplinary journals, which together will form the backbone of your PhD thesis. After four years, your thesis will be completed, and you will be ready to defend it.

The starting point of this research project is that fatigue is a dynamic phenomenon. It fluctuates substantially, on different time courses. For some people, fatigue emerges especially at the end of the working day; for other people, fatigue may be especially pronounced right after waking up; for yet other people, fatigue becomes more intense only after several weeks of high workload; and so forth. Yet, in the past, researchers have often treated fatigue as a rather static phenomenon. For example, in most studies in medicine, fatigue is measured by asking how fatigued people felt “in the last month”.  To drive innovation in this research area, the main aim of this project is to work towards a new conceptual model that explains the individual dynamics of fatigue.

The project will start with an analysis of already-collected data. You will use several forms of time series analysis (on Ecological Momentary Assessment [EMA] data), aiming to develop new ways to quantify fast and slow fluctuations of fatigue in real life, based on complexity theory. Then, you will co-design and conduct a study on people with burnout complaints (i.e. people who are highly affected by fatigue). Finally, you will co-design and conduct a field experiment aimed at changing fatigue dynamics in real life.

As part of your PhD position, you will have a 10% teaching load, and you will be given the opportunity to work on your teaching portfolio for a University Teaching Qualification (UTQ).

Finally, in your job, you will also contribute to academic life at the Behavioural Science Institute, for example by contributing to lab groups, sharing your skills, insights and ideas and engaging with other researchers.

Would you like to learn more about what it’s like to pursue a PhD at Radboud University? Visit the page about working as a PhD candidate. 

3. Profile

Interested candidates who do not meet all the job requirements are also invited to apply. That said, we are looking for a candidate with the following profile:

• You have a Research Master’s degree in Psychology or a related field, with good study results and well-developed academic skills.
• You are interested in learning more about the experience of fatigue.
• You should be willing and able to take an interdisciplinary approach, because fatigue has been studied in different fields, such as work psychology, clinical psychology, neuroscience and medicine.
• You really enjoy and are skilled at working with data. You have the ability to learn new technical skills somewhat independently. Ideally, you have ample experience working with R/RStudio. Your research will involve analyses of EMA data.
• You either have some experience with this type of data or are willing to learn.
• Your research will involve advanced time-series analyses. Also here, you either have some experience with this type of technique or you are willing to acquire these skills. 

4. We are

The Behavioural Science Institute (BSI) is an interdisciplinary research institute where fundamental, applied and translational research takes place with the aim of understanding important societal issues and contributing to their solutions. BSI is one of the three research institutes of the Faculty of Social Sciences at Radboud University. Our researchers collaborate across the boundaries of psychology, communication science and pedagogical and educational science. Our mission for the coming years is to join forces in interdisciplinary research on the theme ’Empowering the Young’. We study the challenges that young people face in our current society and contribute to their empowerment.

BSI performs high-quality research with scientific and societal impact. To foster this, the institute provides excellent research facilities and has strong collaborations with non-academic partners. Moreover, BSI is known for its successful graduate school and strong dedication to open science and team science. We stand for a warm, inclusive and cooperative research environment in which our staff are well-supported in a work culture that promotes collaboration and respect.

You will become part of the Work, Health and Performance (WHP) group of the Behavioural Science Institute. This group examines work behaviour in the increasingly dynamic and technological context of work and organisations. We conduct innovative and rigorous research on work, health and performance, aiming to have a significant theoretical and societal impact. The WHP programme includes researchers with diverse expertise who collaborate with a shared mission to promote healthy working and understand the role of new technologies in work.

You will also join the Radboud Ecological Momentary Assessment Center (REMAC). REMAC is a collaborative hub for researchers from Radboud University and the Radboud university medical center, who share an interest in intensive longitudinal data.

This project will be supervised by Dr Erik Bijleveld in collaboration with Dr Fred Hasselman and Prof. Sabine Geurts.

5. We offer

• We will give you a temporary employment contract (1.0 FTE) of 1.5 years, after which your performance will be evaluated. If the evaluation is positive, your contract will be extended by 2.5 years (4-year contract).     
• You will receive a starting salary of €3,059 gross per month based on a 38-hour working week, which will increase to €3,881 in the fourth year (salary scale P).
• You will receive an 8% holiday allowance and an 8,3% end-of-year bonus. 
• There may be an opportunity for Dual Career Coaching. The Dual Career Coaching assists your partner via support, tools, and resources to improve their chances of independently finding employment in the Netherlands. 
• You will receive extra days off. With full-time employment, you can choose between 30 or 41 days of annual leave instead of the statutory 20. 

6. Practical information and applying

You can apply only via the button below. Address your letter of application to Erik Bijleveld. In the application form, you will find which documents you need to include with your application. We look forward to receiving your application.

The first interviews will take place on Monday 19 January. You will preferably start your employment on 1 March 2026.

We can imagine you're curious about our application procedure. It describes what you can expect during the application procedure and how we handle your personal data and internal and external candidates.