MSCA-PF: Joint application at the University of Granada. Department of Experimental Psychology

Professor Cándida Castro Ramírez from the Department of Experimental Psychology at the University of Granada, welcomes postdoctoral candidates interested in applying for a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowships (MSCA-PF) in 2021 at this University. Please note that applicants must comply with the Mobility Rule (more information about the 2020 call: http://sl.ugr.es/0aNV, the 2021 call is not yet open).

Brief description of the institution:

The University of Granada (UGR), founded in 1531, is one of the largest and most important universities in Spain. With over 60.000 undergraduate and postgraduate students and 6.000 staff. UGR offers a total of 89 degrees, 110 master’s degrees and 28 doctoral programmes through its 123 departments and 27 centers. Consequently, the UGR offers one of the most extensive and diverse ranges of higher education programmes in Spain.

The UGR has awarded with the "Human Resources Excellence in Research (HRS4R)", which reflects the UGR’s commitment to continuously improve its human resource policies in line with the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers. UGR is also a leading institution in research, located in the top of Spanish universities by a variety of ranking criteria, such as national R&D projects, fellowships awarded, publications, or international funding. UGR is one of the few Spanish Universities listed in the Shanghai Top 500 ranking - Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) (http://sl.ugr.es/0bsW). The UGR is amongst the 201-300 first universities of the world, between 2nd-5th position of Spanish universities and number 1 in the Andalusian Region in the Shanghai Top 500 ranking. Specialties at UGR that stand out are Library & Information Science (position 32) and Food Science & Technology (position 36). Moreover, the UGR is also situated amongst the first 100 universities in Mining & Mineral Engineering between (76th-100th position), in Mathematics (between 76th-100th position) and in Hospitality & Tourism Management (between 76th-100th position). The edition of the ARWU places the UGR in 201-300th position in the world and as the 4th highest ranked University in Spain, reaffirming its position as an institution at the forefront of national and international research.

Additionally, the UGR has 8 researchers at the top of the Highly Cited Researchers (HCR) list in Computer Sciences & Engineering (position 101-150). It is also well recognized for its web presence (http://sl.ugr.es/0a6i), being positioned at 43th place in the top 200 Universities in Europe.

Internationally, we bet decidedly by our participation in the calls of the Framework Programme of the European Union. For the duration of the last two Framework Programmes, the UGR has obtained a total of 67 projects, with total funding of 18.029 million euros, and for H2020, 118 projects with total funding around 29.115 million euros.

Brief description of the Centre/Research Group:

The Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center at University of Granada (CIMCYC-UGR) is a centre for psychological excellence research.

We incorporate scientists coming from all areas of Psychology motivated by the study of mental and brain functions using a cluster of classical and modern neuroimaging techniques.

We all share the goal of understanding how mental processes and behaviour emerge from normal brain activity, and how behavioral problems are related to the breakdown of brain processes. The CIMCYC is composed by a pleiade of research teams devoted to the study of all aspects of Psychology, encompassing Clinical and Health Psychology, Human Development, Applied Psychology, Higher Cognitive functions and social interactions.

Home to the Functional Magnetic Resonance Unit of the University of Granada, the leading neuroimaging tool of Southern Spain, CIMCYC is aimed at improving citizens well-being, seeking to disentangle the ways in which mind, brain and behavior are causally related. We host and train over 250 researchers, and hold collaborations with more than 50 researchers throughout the world.

Apart from conducting high-standard scientific research, we plan to offer a range of training opportunities to support the development of psychological research both at the regional andalusian level as well as nationally and internationally.

Project description:

Skill, Age and Character Traits: Hazard Perception and Risky Decision-Making in Driving.

Driving, like sport, depends not only on the skill of the person carrying it out but also on the level of risk he or she is willing to assume. We propose to study Hazard Perception & Prediction skills (HP) and Risky Decision Making (RDM) independently as they are conceptually different and empirically separable psychological processes..

HP has been defined as the skill of reading the road, anticipating what is going to happen in order to detect and respond to events on the road that have a high probability of producing a collision and require the driver to carry out an evasive manoeuvre, brake or change trajectory. It has also been demonstrated that a greater ability in HP and hazard prediction correlate with a decrease in accidents. For the creation of HP tests, only naturalistic recordings of hazardous situations in which the driver plays a passive role should be selected (not those provoked by the actions of another road user, e.g., a delivery driver half-hidden suddenly crosses the road).

La RDM depends on the self-assessment of ones driving skills and the calibration of a risk at the particular moment of driving, according to how the benefits and costs of taking that risk are estimated. RDM should be measured considering only situations where the driver plays an active role in provoking the hazard. Active hazards or risky situations involve dangerous behaviour by the driver (e.g., sticking closely to the vehicle in front, driving at excess speed or overtaking unlawfully). Corrrelations will be calculated between the data obtained and the MDSI (Multidimensional Driving Styles Inventory).

1. Group Research Topics:

Assisting in the development of hazard perception testing and training tools.

We created the first hazard perception testing and training for Spain. It can be seen at the DGT (Dirección General de Tráfico), Spanish Department of Transport (http://www.dgt.es/es/seguridad-vial/form*ion-vial/percepcion-riesgo/)

2. We developed a hazard perception test for bus drivers (for the International Road Transport Organisation, Geneva: https://www.iru.org/es).

3. We developed the holistic Hazard Perception and Prediction test for walking, riding a bicycle and driving a car, to understand the global traffic situation.

4. In collaboration with David Crundall (Nottingham Trent University; NTU) we are training.

5º In collaboration with Jose Luis Padilla, we conducted the validation for the Spanish language and driving habits in Spain of the:

ARDES (Attention Related to Driving Errors Scale)

MDSI (Multidimensional Driving Styles Inventory)

FCRSS (Family Climate for Road Safety Scale)

1. Brief description of the Research Group:

Our recent work involved in ascertain the cognitive skills while driving that could be shared by safe drivers regardless of the types of threat specific to each driving context. It also considers the type of driver (learner, novice or experienced) susceptible to specific training, his/her age, personality traits (sensation-seeking, impulsivity, anger, aggression, sensitivity to reward, insensitivity to punishment, etc.) and/or driving styles (reckless, angry, anxious, distractive, cautious, etc.)

Candida Castro’s research is centred on Applied Cognitive Psychology, focusing on Transport Safety. We study the cognitive processes related to driving: situation awareness (perception, comprehension, projection) and decision-making. Across several competitive research grants (11) and research contracts (5) I have displayed skills of team leadership, financial planning and project management, in addition to the necessary research expertise.

Research Area:

• Social Sciences and Humanities (SOC)

For a correct evaluation of your candidature, please send the documents below to Professor Cándida Castro Ramírez (candida@ugr.es):

• CV
• Letter of recommendation (optional)