PhD in Individual Sustainability through Neuroplasticity Practices

Information about the project and the division
The supervisors work of the past decade centered around software engineering for sustainability, meaning how can we use software engineering to develop systems that are sustainable with regard to their long-term impact in different dimensions (social, individual, environmental, technical, economic). One central piece of work that captures our intentions is the Karlskrona Manifesto on Sustainability Design (see www.sustainabilitydesign.org). During the past years, it has become evident that not only our software-intensive systems do not necessarily support a sustainable lifestyle of society, but also most computer workers don’t work and live in a sustainable way. Therefore, the supervisor combined her two areas of expertise, the background in engineering and her background in teaching neuroplasticity-supporting practices like yoga, breathwork and meditation (see www.twinkleflip.com) to bring the benefits of these practices to an audience that may be less likely to engage with it but would hugely benefit – engineers and computer workers. This is where the topic for this PhD position is located, supporting individual sustainability by neuroplasticity practices.

Major responsibilities
Your major responsibilities as a PhD student is to pursue your own doctoral studies. You are expected to develop your own scientific concepts and communicate the results of your research verbally and in writing. Your research will be supervised by well-reputed senior researchers at the involved department. These PhD studies also includes a number of doctoral courses, reviewing literature, interacting with both industrial companies and other PhD-candidates and senior researchers in the field, as well as analysing empirical data, and modelling and using models of human behaviour.

Specifically, this position’s PhD candidate will develop an approach to evaluate the benefits and usefulness of neuroplasticity practices specifically for computer workers, based on a previous work of the supervisor as well as literature on psychometrics and related topics. Computer workers are under high stress at the 2nd most likely population to suffer from depression and anxiety disorders, especially under the recent pandemic, leading to decreased creativity and less efficiency in problem-solving. We investigate the effective use of neuroplasticity practices like yoga poses, breathing practices, and meditation exercises for computer workers in three questions:

1) how to integrate neuroplasticity practices effectively into computer work education and practice,
2) how to measure the effectiveness in terms of cognitive abilities and energy levels, and well-being, and 
3) how to predict good timing for interventions so they don't disturb moments of flow.

The research integrates software engineering, yoga science, communication studies, and mindfulness to elaborate a set of tailored interventions to answer these in empirical evaluation. The project promises to increase the wellbeing and resilience of computer workers in an empirically validated way, leading to more efficiency and effectiveness and decreased burn-out rates and lower risk of depression. If the developers of the systems that run most of our world develop individual sustainability, that balance can propagate into the systems we develop.

The larger context is described in a paper published earlier this year at the ICT4S conference as “Where attention goes, energy flows — enhancing individual sustainability in software engineering” https://research.chalmers.se/en/publication/517448
The approach is to be evaluated in exploratory and confirmatory case studies with companies.

Qualifications
Starting the doctoral education requires an academic degree in an advanced level, at least 240 university points, of which 60 are on an advanced level, or similar knowledge acquired in another way. You should like to work independently, and plan and think strategically. You should have an interest in human behaviour and be able to understand and analyse results from surveys, interview data and workshops. You should also like to work in interdisciplinary projects and have the ability to discuss and communicate his/her work with people of different backgrounds. You should be a motivated person, with a genuine wish to learn more across a wide variety of fields, including psychology, human factors, software engineering, and sustainability, to develop your skills and knowledge.

Candidates are required to have a master's degree in computer science or engineering or in a related subject (“filosofie magister” or "civilingenjör”) including the master thesis, with knowledge in one or more of the following fields: software engineering, social science, human factors, cognitive psychology, human machine interfaces, and cognitive modelling.

The position requires sound verbal and written communication skills in Swedish and English. Chalmers offers Swedish courses.

Application deadline: We will start reviewing applications by 2020-10-20. The position will remain open until filled.

READ MORE AND APPLY HERE