PhD candidate Developmental Psychology Radboud UMC

We are looking for a highly capable, eager, and intrinsically motivated PhD candidate. The project is embedded in our developmental psychobiology research group (DPBLab; PI: Prof.dr. Carolina de Weerth) at the Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour in Nijmegen (the Netherlands). This position is part of a program started with a personal VICI grant awarded to de Weerth by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO). The grant is on children’s gut microbial colonization in relation to stress early in life and later brain functioning, behavior, and cognition. The colonization of the gut by microbes is of interest because it is assumed to play an essential role in children’s physical, behavioral, and cognitive development.

The aim of this PhD project is to examine whether a naturalistic stress-reducing intervention program based on caregiver-infant contact can positively affect infant gut microbial colonization and infant behavioral and cognitive development. In an RCT, caregiver-infant contact in 3-month-old infants starting center-based childcare will be increased in the intervention group during the hours spent in childcare. Trained volunteers will provide this extra caregiver-infant contact.

For more information: see www.dpblab/research/opportunities or mail Prof. Carolina de Weerth: carolina.deweerth@radboudumc.nl

Deadline 26 september