Post-doc Researcher: Comparative Historical Analysis of Welfare Provision and Demographic Changes

Within the Chair Group of Economic and Social History, Faculty of Arts at the University of Groningen, the Netherlands, a Postdoctoral Researcher position is currently available for the period of 2 years (24 months). The position will be within the ERC-funded project “Coping with decline: Comparative social-historical analysis of depopulation and community welfare in Europe, 1950-2022 (DEPOP)”: http://www.rug.nl/let/depop

The successful candidate has a PhD degree in Economic History or Historical Demography or a related discipline (demography, economics, sociology, human geography). Areas of expertise may include one or more fields: economic history, historical demography, comparative history, history of health and care, history of welfare provision and social policy. Expertise and affinity with quantitative methods, mixed-methods and GIS is desirable.

The successful candidate has a good command of English (oral and written). Knowledge of one or more languages relevant for the project (Finland, the Netherlands, and Ukraine) is desirable. The candidate should also be able to work independently, be a team player, and possesses excellent communication skills (indicated by the ability to write scientific papers and deliver presentations).

The overarching goal of the DEPOP project is to comparatively examine the links between regional welfare provision (formal and informal) in health and care sectors and demographic changes in Europe for the period of the past 70 years. This Postdoc position will focus on European regional comparison for the Netherlands, Finland and Ukraine. The Postdoc will be responsible for compiling a dataset of welfare provision at the reginal level (1950-2026) and linking it to the regional demographic data. You will also help with co-organising the project’s conference. 

The position must lead to two academic peer-reviewed articles and one co-edited collective volume.

The Chair Group of Economic and Social History is an ambitious group of researchers dedicated towards global and regional histories of population and health, gender and social inequalities, and focusing on the role of spatial, socioeconomic, and cultural contexts in historical change. We have a specific interest in social science history and long-term historical developments and apply theories and methods from the social sciences in our research. The candidates will also have an opportunity to contribute to the activities of the faculty-wide the Groningen Centre for Health and Humanities and the History of Medicine and Health Group and Intersecting Inequalities Group of the Centre for Historical Studies.