Postdoctoral Position in Computational Humanities to Research the Macroevolution of European Li[...]

The Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics (MPIEA) investigates why and how people create art and how they perform, experience, and evaluate it. The Institute’s focus is on music, but we also engage with other arts such as literature, film, and dance.

Postdoctoral Position

The Research Group Cultural Evolution of the Arts invites applications for a fixed‑term (24 months) postdoctoral position, salary scale 13 TVöD.

This position will be affiliated with the newly established research group Cultural Evolution of the Arts, which unites a Max Planck Independent Research Group and the European Research Council‑funded project Macroevolution of European Literature (MELT), both led by Dr. Oleg Sobchuk. The main focus of the group is to understand the forces driving the long‑term dynamics of literature, film, and other arts. To this end, members of the group rely on large cultural datasets, computational methods, and theoretical models of cultural evolution.

Your Tasks

• Research the macroevolution of European literature between 1800 and 2000 across all major European languages.
• Develop computational methods for analyzing and visualizing literary data, including inferring influence between authors and works, representing influences through dynamic networks and directed graphs, and creating effective visualizations of large‑scale literary networks.
• Use inferred connections and networks to address big‑picture questions such as: why new genres emerge or disappear, why certain authors become famous while others do not, and how styles and topics transmit across time and space.

Requirements

Essential

• Doctoral Degree in computational humanities, computational social science, or a related field.
• Willingness to participate in interdisciplinary research at the intersection of the humanities and social sciences.
• Fluency in written and spoken English.
• Strong teamwork skills.
• Proven ability to independently design and conduct computational studies.
• Interest in learning and developing new computational methods.

Desired

• Experience working with large datasets.
• Excellent computational analysis skills.
• Proficiency in R or Python.
• Solid knowledge of statistics.
• Experience in web development for interactive data visualization.

We encourage applications from candidates who may not meet all of the desirable criteria, as we are looking for potential and fit, not perfection.

Our Offer

The research will be conducted at the Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics in Frankfurt am Main. The MPIEA offers a highly interdisciplinary and international scientific environment, with English serving as the primary language of communication. Located in Frankfurt am Main, the Institute benefits from close collaborations with Goethe University Frankfurt and other leading research institutions in the region. You can expect a modern workplace and a pleasant working atmosphere.

The position starts at the earliest possible date and is offered for a fixed term of two years, with the possibility of extension. The agreed working time is 39 hours per week. Compensation is based on the collective wage agreement for the civil service (TVöD Bund E13) and includes an annual bonus.

Your Application

The Max Planck Society is committed to diversity, equal opportunities, and inclusion. One of its goals is to increase the employment of persons with severe disabilities – applications from severely disabled individuals are therefore explicitly encouraged. The society also aims to achieve gender equality and increase the proportion of women in underrepresented areas; women are therefore explicitly encouraged to apply.

Submit all application materials by August 15, 2026 to the applicant‑management system. Include:

• A detailed CV, including a list of publications and the names and contact information of at least two referees.
• A statement of interest summarizing your previous research and outlining the projects you would like to pursue during this postdoctoral project (max. 3 pages).
• One publication that you consider your best work, accompanied by a brief statement explaining why and describing your role in the project (max. 1 page).
• Copies of relevant degrees and/or certificates, including your doctoral certificate.

For questions about the project, feel free to contact Dr. Sobchuk via job@ae.mpg.de.