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23 Oct 2026
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Tampere University is a unique, boldly futureâoriented and evolving community, and one of Finlandâs most multidisciplinary universities. At Tampere University, technology, health and society come together in a distinctive way. Our research groups and projects carry out interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral research that transcends organisational boundaries. Our community is international, with members from more than 80 countries. Read more at Tampere University (TAU) | Tampere University. We are seeking postdoctoral research fellows in the area of gameful and engaging technologies for sustainability to join us at the Research Centre of Gameful Realities , Tampere University. The positions are situated in the broad area of engaging media technologies for prosocial, sustainable, and transformative applications. We are looking for candidates who are interested in investigating how novel engaging media and technologies (such as extended reality, gamification, gameful systems, bioadaptive technologies, artificial intelligence, conversational agents, and other interactive or experiential media) can help people reflect, learn, engage with humanity's wicked challenges, collaborate, or imagine and shape futures in these domains. The positions are suitable for applicants with a background in, for example, computer science, humanâcomputer interaction, affective computing, information systems, cognitive science, media and communication studies, design, health technology, behavioural sciences, education, economics, or humanâenvironment interaction. We welcome both theoretically ambitious and empirically rigorous doctoral projects, including those combining different approaches such as technology development, experimental research, qualitative inquiry, design, and public engagement. The selected postdoctoral research fellow(s) will develop their own research plans within this broader research agenda. Some of the positions are expected to be connected to the project CLIMETA, while others may be shaped around the OPEN theme relating to the aboveâdescribed emerging research directions within the Research Centre of Gameful Realities (see Research Context below). We therefore welcome: a) applicants with a clear interest in CLIMETA, as well as b) applicants whose proposed research fits the wider theme of engaging media and technologies for sustainable applications (OPEN). Research Context 1. Non project-specific / OPEN application Engaging technologies increasingly shape how people encounter information, learn, make decisions, understand themselves, relate to others, participate in communities, and act in the world. Games and gamification, extended reality, virtual environments, AIâsupported systems, conversational agents, bioadaptive technologies, and similar avenues are creating new possibilities for learning, collaboration, participation, wellbeing, behaviour change, creativity, and social imagination. At the same time, societies are navigating complex transformations related to, for example, sustainability, technological change, changing forms of work and consumption, social polarisation, and participation. Engaging technologies can make complex systems experiential, create new forms of social interaction and participation, support learning and reflection, facilitate perspectiveâtaking and collaboration, and enable people to explore alternative behaviours and possible futures. The recruited postdoctoral research fellow(s) will investigate how games, XR, AI, gamification, and other engaging and emerging media technologies can contribute to individual, social, and societal benefit. Research may address, for example, learning and literacy, motivation and behaviour, interaction and user experience, agency and participation, social connection and cooperation, wellbeing, perspectiveâtaking, creativity, systems thinking, public engagement with science, digital and AIâmediated interaction, or the design and evaluation of transformative experiences. We are particularly interested in research addressing sustainability broadly understood, including its environmental, social, economic, cultural, and technological dimensions, as well as the relationships and tradeâoffs between them. 2. Project CLIMETA: VR, Metacognition, and Climate Change engagement Virtual reality can uniquely instantiate the dynamic coupling of mind, body, and environment at the root of thinking and learning by having users embody avatars that are embedded in multisensory and contextârich worlds, enact understanding through interactive, consequential engagement, and extend their cognition through features such as artificial intelligence (AI) guides and bioadaptive feedback. CLIMETA investigates how immersive virtual reality and related engaging technologies can support metaâengagement: peopleâs capacity to become aware of, reflect on, and regulate their own cognitive, emotional, and behavioural responses to complex societal challenges such as climate change. Climate change is often approached as a matter of information, attitudes, or behaviour. However, peopleâs engagement with climate change is also shaped by deeper cognitive, emotional, and social processes. Barriers such as shortâterm thinking, climate anxiety, polarisation, inâgroup bias, distorted selfâperceptions, and biased information processing can limit peopleâs ability to engage constructively with complexity. Within CLIMETA, possible postdoctoral research themes may include, for example, VRâbased climate engagement, metacognitive reflection, avatar embodiment and perspectiveâtaking, AIâsupported reflective agents, bioadaptive interactions, and developing methods for assessing metaâengagement in immersive environments. JOB DESCRIPTION In this position, we invite candidates to propose their own research agenda relating to engaging media and technologies by drawing on methodologies such as design and participatory design workshops, VR development, LLM conversational agent design and/or evaluation methodologies, and laboratory experiments including interviews and psychophysiological measurements. We especially welcome applicants interested in laboratory and experimental research, while also valuing interdisciplinary and designâoriented approaches. The postdoctoral research fellow(s) selected for this position will develop their own research agenda within the broader scope of the open positions. Candidates are expected to design studies and disseminate them in a variety of ways, including publishing in academic venues and demonstrating the results in related events, including those oriented to the general public. The work includes research planning, experiment organising, data gathering and analysis, article writing, and dissemination of results. Moreover, the candidate is expected to participate in projectâwide collaboration and further funding acquisition, as well as participate in communityâbuilding more broadly within the research group and the Research Centre of Gameful Realities. Teaching and supervision will be negotiated based on the interests of the candidate. REQUIREMENTS The requirements below are the qualities we envision to be suitable for the defined tasks. However, we encourage all candidates who see themselves contributing in unique ways to one of these projects to apply. Applicable degree: i.e. PhD degree in a relevant field before the start of employment (latest 1.6.2027). Fluency in English Useful dimensions of candidateâs background Computer science / Humanâcomputer interaction / Affective computing / Information systems Applied psychology / cognitive science Media and communication studies Health technology Educational sciences (especially public engagement with science) Economics Possible methodological skills Aptitude for quantitative and/or qualitative empirical research (especially laboratory experiments) Aptitude for psychometric measurement Aptitude for psychophysiological measurement (especially realâtime signal processing and feedback) Ability to independently develop gamified environments (software) Understanding of designâdriven methodologies (e.g., speculative and critical design, research through design, participatory design, coâdesign) Strong academic writing skills and publication productivity Drive for rigorous and impactful research Drive for a career in research WE OFFER The fullâtime position will be filled for a fixedâterm period of two to four (2â4) years, starting upon mutual agreement but as soon as possible but latest 1.6.2027. The contract length will be determined based on the selected candidateâs qualifications, research profile, and how their agreed tasks align with the project and the broader research agenda. A trial period of six (6) months applies to all our new employees. The salary will be based on both the job requirements and the employeeâs personal performance in accordance with the Finnish UniversitySalary System. According to the criteria applied to teaching and research staff, the position of a Postdoctoral Research Fellow is placed on level 5 of the job requirements scale. A typical starting salary for a Postdoctoral Researcher with no or little prior experience is approximately âŹ4,000 per month. The salary increases based on the job requirement level and personal performance level. The University offers a wide range of staff benefits, such as occupational health care, flexible working hours, excellent sports facilities on campus, and several onâcampus restaurants and cafĂ©s with staff discounts. WORKING ENVIRONMENT Depending on their topic, selected research fellow(s) will be based at Tampere Universityâs City centre campus within the Computing Sciences Unit at the Faculty of Information Technology and Communication Sciences (ITC) (CLIMETA and OPEN themes), or at the Hervanta campus within the Faculty of Management and Business (OPEN themes). They will work in close collaboration with researchers across the Research Centre of Gameful Realities (RCGR) in the context of the larger strategic profiling area of Tampere University in Gamification, Extended Reality and their application towards holistic sustainability. The Research Centre ofGamefulRealities (RCGR) is a transâdisciplinary research centre which brings together the Faculty of Information Technology and Communication Science, Faculty of Business Administration and Management and Faculty of Education at Tampere University. It is internationally revered for seminal academic and societal contributions in the areas of novel technologies such as motivational information systems (e.g. gamification, gameâbased learning, quantifiedâself, persuasive technologies), internet commerce (e.g. crowdsourcing, crowdfunding, sharing economies, game economies), new media (e.g. esports, streaming, immersive journalism) as well as humanâcomputer interaction (VR / AR, wearables, transhumanism, user interfaces, moreâthanâhuman interaction). RCGR is one of the most prolific research centres internationally in its pursuit to wield gameful approaches towards the flourishing of the planet, people and prosperity. Flagship consortium: UNITE | ForestâHumanâMachine Interplay is a prestigious research Flagship consortium composed of Tampere University, University of Eastern Finland, Finnish Geospatial Research Institute FGI and Natural Resources Institute Finland. The position offers unique vantages points and entry to an ambitious consortium that represents top international scholarship in the areas of gameful technologies and holistic sustainability. UNITE brings together the worldâs leading research groups in the fields of forest sciences, geoinformation and sensor development, and gamification. LIFE IN TAMPERE Tampere is one of the major academic hubs in the Nordic countries and offers a dynamic living environment. Tampere region is one of the three most rapidly growing urban areas in Finland and home to a vibrant knowledgeâintensive entrepreneurial community. The city is an industrial powerhouse that enjoys a rich cultural scene and a reputation as a centre of Finlandâs information society. The city campus of the Tampere University, where the candidate(s) will be located, is walking distance to the city center. Tampere is an epicenter of game research internationally. The closing date for applications is October 15, 2026 (at 23.59 EEST / 20.59 UTC) #J-18808-Ljbffr