Postdoctoral Scholar-Fixed Term

Postdoctoral Scholar-Fixed Term

This 2-year postdoctoral scholar position will be the primary researcher for the ethnographic fieldwork component of a multi-year, NSF-funded study examining how rural Michigan communities have adapted to decades of workplace automation in manufacturing and agriculture. Working across three case counties, the postdoc will conduct sustained observational fieldwork and interviews with current and former workers, business owners and managers, families, and community leaders, documenting how the impact of automation in the workplace unfolds and how communities respond.

The postdoc will be embedded in each community for extended periods, working alongside the PI, Co-PI, and a team of graduate student researchers to capture both workplace-level dynamics and broader community-level adaptation.

The successful candidate will contribute to all stages of the ethnographic research process: developing rapport and access with community and business partners, conducting semi-structured and ethnographic interviews, maintaining detailed fieldnotes and in-process memos, and contributing to qualitative data analysis using flexible coding and concept-mapping approaches. The postdoc will also contribute to academic publications, policy briefs, and presentations at academic and professional venues, and will be trained in responsible conduct of research.

The position is associated with the Quello Center for Media and Information Policy in the Department of Media and Information and the Future of Work Initiative in the College of Social Sciences at Michigan State University. The Quello Center conducts research to inform media, communication, and information policy. Our work critically examines the role of technology, policy and regulation for citizens, communities, and society.

We often work with multiple stakeholders to find solutions to harness the full benefits of advanced communications. The Future of Work Initiative is a multidisciplinary research collaborative dedicated to understanding the ways that emerging technologies are reshaping the experience of work, with the goal of improving workers' lives. We pursue this goal through industry and government partnerships and programming, research incubators, and mentorship.

As an institution of higher learning, Michigan State University is committed to providing a safe environment for its students, faculty, and staff in support of its educational mission. With this commitment, the University conducts criminal background checks and professional misconduct reviews of all applicants for employment in faculty, academic staff, and executive management searches.

Professional Misconduct Review

A professional misconduct review is a prerequisite for a candidate to be selected for this position. Applicants will be asked to disclose whether they are subject to any pending investigation, findings or sanctions related to professional misconduct. Professional misconduct includes misconduct related to a person's employment, including, but not limited to, theft, embezzlement, research integrity, discrimination, or harassment under civil rights laws and policies, including protected identity harassment, sexual harassment, sexual misconduct (sexual assault, sexual exploitation, dating violence, domestic violence, stalking, etc.),

and retaliation. All applicants will be asked to sign an authorization and release, which authorizes the University to contact the candidate's current and former employers, for a period of 7 years prior to the date of application, related to any pending investigations, findings of responsibility and/or sanctions related to professional misconduct. Nothing will be sent to current or former employers unless the candidate reaches the semi-finalist stage.

The existence of professional misconduct history does not automatically exclude a candidate from employment. The University will assess the history, including any information provided by the candidate, in determining whether it is compatible with the position. The University may decline to hire a candidate based on the professional misconduct review. All records obtained from…