Research Fellow I

About SUTD

SUTD is the world’s first Design AI university. With Design AI, artificial intelligence is treated as a partner and a member of the team – not just a tool. As a result of this unique SUTD treatment, AI and humans brainstorm, spar and prototype together, resulting in solutions that are elevated several-fold. This human-AI team concept has been made possible because of SUTD’s unique cohort-based interdisciplinary pedagogy. As a trailblazer in the field of design and technology education and research, SUTD has been pioneering innovative programmes and initiatives since its formation 16 years ago. As part its new mid-term growth strategy called SUTD Leap, it will work closely with industry to co-create solutions in both education and research – for a better world.

What You'll Do
The Language and Social Cognition Lab at Singapore University of Technology and Design invite applications for a Research Fellow to join an interdisciplinary research project examining human-human and human-AI communication in multilingual/multicultural contexts, with a particular focus on senior adults in Singapore.

This project examines how linguistic diversity, cultural norms, and aging shape communicative breakdowns and adaptations in interactions involving large language model (LLM)-based conversational agents. The candidate will conduct mixed-methods research, including interviews, behavioral experiments, discourse analysis of multilingual dialogue, and field user studies in local elder-care settings. The candidate will work closely with an interdisciplinary team across psychology, HCI, and AI, contributing to the evaluation of proactive AI companion agents with respect to cultural sensitivity, engagement, and usability.

Who We're Looking For

• At least a PhD in Psychology, Cognitive Science, Human-Computer Interaction, Communication Science, or related fields.
• Strong background in psychological research methods (e.g., behavioral, experimental, interviews, mixed methods) is required.
• Experience in conducting research with senior adults, multicultural or multilingual research, and/or human-AI interaction is preferred.
• Knowledge of or willingness to work with LLM-based systems will be a strong asset.

This position is for one-year contract, with the possibility of a one-year extension subject to performance and funding availability.