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PhD position in Communication Science: Explaining Susceptibility to Health Hacks

  • VU Hoofdgebouw
  • Amsterdam
  • 1 / 1
  • Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities
  • PhD
  • MSc
  • Closes on
    26-10-2026
  • Publishing date
    02-10-2026
Apply
Are you interested in why young people are drawn to quick health tips on social media, even when these tips may do more harm than good? Then this PhD project might be for you.

Your function

Social media are full of "health hacks": short, practical tips promising quick improvements in health, wellbeing, or appearance. While many are harmless, others are misleading or even hazardous, ranging from extreme detox regimens and homemade sunscreen recipes to unproven remedies promoted as alternatives to medical treatment.

This PhD position is part of Hooked by the Health Hack, a four-year research project funded by NWO (Open Competition SSH) and carried out by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Erasmus University Rotterdam. The project examines how young adults encounter and evaluate health hacks, and why some hacks are so persuasive, focusing on the interplay between individual characteristics, features of the online context, and cognitive processing during exposure.

The project focuses on young adults aged 18–25. In this life stage of growing independence and identity exploration, health beliefs, routines, and self-perceptions are actively taking shape. This makes young adults a particularly relevant group for understanding both the appeal and the consequences of online health hacks.

The project will generate knowledge to inform user-centred strategies that strengthen resilience to misleading and harmful health advice online. These strategies aim to support critical evaluation while respecting people's autonomy in making their own health decisions.

The project brings together communication science, health psychology, and behavioural and cognitive science in an integrated mixed-methods design. Two closely aligned PhD tracks follow a shared three-stage research route: (1) identifying key individual and contextual factors, (2) examining the cognitive processes through which these factors shape evaluations during exposure, and (3) translating these insights into intervention strategies.

Track A uses participatory research methods; Track B uses survey and experimental research. The two PhD candidates work closely together to develop a shared conceptual model and co-create interventions. This vacancy concerns Track B, based at the Communication Science department of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.

Your duties

Your project: Track B — Survey and experimental research

Track B provides the explanatory, mechanism-testing perspective within the project: it examines how and why individual and contextual factors make people susceptible to hazardous health hacks, by testing the cognitive processes at work during actual exposure to these hacks. Your work draws on dual-process theories of reasoning, distinguishing fast, intuitive processing from slower, reflective evaluation. 

Your work will include:

  • Conducting a multimodal content analysis of hazardous online health hacks.
  • Designing and fielding a large-scale panel survey on individual and contextual susceptibility factors.
  • Conducting controlled online and/or laboratory experiments on intuitive and reflective processing during exposure to health hacks.
  • Experimentally evaluating intervention strategies co-developed with Track A.
  • Integrating quantitative findings with Track A’s participatory research in a joint mixed-methods synthesis.
  • Publishing research, presenting at conferences, and contributing to knowledge exchange with practice partners.

Your profile

  • A completed (research) Master's degree in Communication Science, (Media, Social, or Cognitive) Psychology, or a related social science discipline, obtained by the start of the position.
  • Strong quantitative research skills, including survey design and experimental design.
  • Proficiency in statistical analysis (e.g., in R) and, preferably, experience with advanced techniques such as multilevel modelling, mediation/moderation analysis, or structural equation modelling.
  • Affinity with, or willingness to quickly develop expertise in, dual-process theories of reasoning and cognitive processing paradigms.
  • Genuine interest in health communication, misinformation, and the psychology of persuasion.
  • Excellent academic writing and communication skills in English.
  • A collaborative mindset and willingness to work closely with a parallel PhD track with a different methodological orientation, and to contribute to genuinely interdisciplinary integration.
  • The ability to work independently and take ownership of a substantial part of a multi-year, multi-stage research project.

What do we offer?

  • A full-time PhD position for a total of four years (initial contract of one year, extended after a positive assessment), embedded in the Department of Communication Science at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and its graduate school. Your dissertation at the end of the fourth year forms the end of your employment contract.
  • A salary of € 3.204,00 (PhD) and maximum € 4.051,00 (PhD) gross per month in the fourth year, for a full-time employment.
  • Close supervision, embedded in a well-resourced, interdisciplinary team.
  • A genuinely collaborative research environment, with a sister PhD position (Track A) at Erasmus University Rotterdam and links to national networks in media literacy and digital wellbeing.

We also offer you attractive fringe benefits and arrangements. Some examples:

  • A full-time 38-hour working week comes with a holiday leave entitlement of 232 hours per year. If you choose to work 40 hours, you have 96 extra holiday leave hours on an annual basis. For part-timers, this is calculated pro rata.
  • 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus
  • contribution to commuting expenses
  • optional model for designing a personalized benefits package
  • a wide range of sports facilities which staff may use at a modest charge

About us

Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities
A better understanding of ourselves and social communities, values and meaning, through social sciences and humanities. That is the aim of The Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities. No single discipline can do this alone. The SSH disciplines are characterised by an open way of thinking and the natural urge to seek coherence and connection.

The faculty consists of nine academic departments within three schools: School of Religion & Theology (SRT), School of Social Sciences (SSc) and School of Humanities (SH).

Are you interested in joining Social Sciences and Humanities? You become part of a dynamic academic community with approximately 900 staff members, over 5,000 regular students and more than 5,000 course participants. In an inspiring and collegial environment, we work together on education and research with impact.

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam stands for values-driven education and research. We are open-minded experts with the ability to think freely - a broader mind. Maintaining an entrepreneurial perspective and concentrating on diversity, significance and humanity, we work on sustainable solutions with social impact. By joining forces, across the boundaries of disciplines, we work towards a better world for people and planet. Together we create a safe and respectful working and study climate, and an inspiring environment for education and research. Learn more about our codes of conduct

We are located on one physical campus, in the heart of Amsterdam's Zuidas business district, with excellent location and accessibility. Over 6,150 staff work at the VU and over 31,000 students attend academic education.

Diversity
Diversity is the driving force of VU Amsterdam. VU wants to be accessible and receptive to diversity in disciplines, cultures, ideas, nationalities, beliefs, preferences and worldviews. We believe that trust, respect, interest and differences lead to new insights and innovation, to sharpness and clarity, to excellence and a broader understanding.

We stand for an inclusive community and believe that diversity and internationalisation contribute to the quality of education, research and our services.

Therefore, we are always searching for people whose backgrounds and experience contribute to the diversity of the VU community.

Interested

Are you interested? Please send your CV, a motivation letter (max. 1 page) explaining your interest in and fit with this position, and a relevant writing sample (e.g., thesis chapter or publication) by Monday October 26th (23:59 hr). Interviews (in Amsterdam or online) are expected to take place between 2-14 November. Expected start date is 1 January 2027. For questions about the position, please contact dr. M.A. Tanis, [email protected].

Applications received by e-mail will not be considered.

Acquisition in response to this advertisement is not appreciated.

Your function

Social media are full of "health hacks": short, practical tips promising quick improvements in health, wellbeing, or appearance. While many are harmless, others are misleading or even hazardous, ranging from extreme detox regimens and homemade sunscreen recipes to unproven remedies promoted as alternatives to medical treatment.

This PhD position is part of Hooked by the Health Hack, a four-year research project funded by NWO (Open Competition SSH) and carried out by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Erasmus University Rotterdam. The project examines how young adults encounter and evaluate health hacks, and why some hacks are so persuasive, focusing on the interplay between individual characteristics, features of the online context, and cognitive processing during exposure.

The project focuses on young adults aged 18–25. In this life stage of growing independence and identity exploration, health beliefs, routines, and self-perceptions are actively taking shape. This makes young adults a particularly relevant group for understanding both the appeal and the consequences of online health hacks.

The project will generate knowledge to inform user-centred strategies that strengthen resilience to misleading and harmful health advice online. These strategies aim to support critical evaluation while respecting people's autonomy in making their own health decisions.

The project brings together communication science, health psychology, and behavioural and cognitive science in an integrated mixed-methods design. Two closely aligned PhD tracks follow a shared three-stage research route: (1) identifying key individual and contextual factors, (2) examining the cognitive processes through which these factors shape evaluations during exposure, and (3) translating these insights into intervention strategies.

Track A uses participatory research methods; Track B uses survey and experimental research. The two PhD candidates work closely together to develop a shared conceptual model and co-create interventions. This vacancy concerns Track B, based at the Communication Science department of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.

Your duties

Your project: Track B — Survey and experimental research

Track B provides the explanatory, mechanism-testing perspective within the project: it examines how and why individual and contextual factors make people susceptible to hazardous health hacks, by testing the cognitive processes at work during actual exposure to these hacks. Your work draws on dual-process theories of reasoning, distinguishing fast, intuitive processing from slower, reflective evaluation. 

Your work will include:

  • Conducting a multimodal content analysis of hazardous online health hacks.
  • Designing and fielding a large-scale panel survey on individual and contextual susceptibility factors.
  • Conducting controlled online and/or laboratory experiments on intuitive and reflective processing during exposure to health hacks.
  • Experimentally evaluating intervention strategies co-developed with Track A.
  • Integrating quantitative findings with Track A’s participatory research in a joint mixed-methods synthesis.
  • Publishing research, presenting at conferences, and contributing to knowledge exchange with practice partners.

Your profile

  • A completed (research) Master's degree in Communication Science, (Media, Social, or Cognitive) Psychology, or a related social science discipline, obtained by the start of the position.
  • Strong quantitative research skills, including survey design and experimental design.
  • Proficiency in statistical analysis (e.g., in R) and, preferably, experience with advanced techniques such as multilevel modelling, mediation/moderation analysis, or structural equation modelling.
  • Affinity with, or willingness to quickly develop expertise in, dual-process theories of reasoning and cognitive processing paradigms.
  • Genuine interest in health communication, misinformation, and the psychology of persuasion.
  • Excellent academic writing and communication skills in English.
  • A collaborative mindset and willingness to work closely with a parallel PhD track with a different methodological orientation, and to contribute to genuinely interdisciplinary integration.
  • The ability to work independently and take ownership of a substantial part of a multi-year, multi-stage research project.

What do we offer?

  • A full-time PhD position for a total of four years (initial contract of one year, extended after a positive assessment), embedded in the Department of Communication Science at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and its graduate school. Your dissertation at the end of the fourth year forms the end of your employment contract.
  • A salary of € 3.204,00 (PhD) and maximum € 4.051,00 (PhD) gross per month in the fourth year, for a full-time employment.
  • Close supervision, embedded in a well-resourced, interdisciplinary team.
  • A genuinely collaborative research environment, with a sister PhD position (Track A) at Erasmus University Rotterdam and links to national networks in media literacy and digital wellbeing.

We also offer you attractive fringe benefits and arrangements. Some examples:

  • A full-time 38-hour working week comes with a holiday leave entitlement of 232 hours per year. If you choose to work 40 hours, you have 96 extra holiday leave hours on an annual basis. For part-timers, this is calculated pro rata.
  • 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus
  • contribution to commuting expenses
  • optional model for designing a personalized benefits package
  • a wide range of sports facilities which staff may use at a modest charge

About us

Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities
A better understanding of ourselves and social communities, values and meaning, through social sciences and humanities. That is the aim of The Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities. No single discipline can do this alone. The SSH disciplines are characterised by an open way of thinking and the natural urge to seek coherence and connection.

The faculty consists of nine academic departments within three schools: School of Religion & Theology (SRT), School of Social Sciences (SSc) and School of Humanities (SH).

Are you interested in joining Social Sciences and Humanities? You become part of a dynamic academic community with approximately 900 staff members, over 5,000 regular students and more than 5,000 course participants. In an inspiring and collegial environment, we work together on education and research with impact.

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam stands for values-driven education and research. We are open-minded experts with the ability to think freely - a broader mind. Maintaining an entrepreneurial perspective and concentrating on diversity, significance and humanity, we work on sustainable solutions with social impact. By joining forces, across the boundaries of disciplines, we work towards a better world for people and planet. Together we create a safe and respectful working and study climate, and an inspiring environment for education and research. Learn more about our codes of conduct

We are located on one physical campus, in the heart of Amsterdam's Zuidas business district, with excellent location and accessibility. Over 6,150 staff work at the VU and over 31,000 students attend academic education.

Diversity
Diversity is the driving force of VU Amsterdam. VU wants to be accessible and receptive to diversity in disciplines, cultures, ideas, nationalities, beliefs, preferences and worldviews. We believe that trust, respect, interest and differences lead to new insights and innovation, to sharpness and clarity, to excellence and a broader understanding.

We stand for an inclusive community and believe that diversity and internationalisation contribute to the quality of education, research and our services.

Therefore, we are always searching for people whose backgrounds and experience contribute to the diversity of the VU community.

Questions about the vacancy?

Please contact

Dr. Martin Tanis

Associate Professor
020 598 6854 (secretariat)

Interested

Are you interested? Please send your CV, a motivation letter (max. 1 page) explaining your interest in and fit with this position, and a relevant writing sample (e.g., thesis chapter or publication) by Monday October 26th (23:59 hr). Interviews (in Amsterdam or online) are expected to take place between 2-14 November. Expected start date is 1 January 2027. For questions about the position, please contact dr. M.A. Tanis, [email protected].

Applications received by e-mail will not be considered.

Acquisition in response to this advertisement is not appreciated.

Questions about the vacancy?

Please contact

Dr. Martin Tanis

Associate Professor
020 598 6854 (secretariat)

Application procedure

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