Psychology

IT'S ALL IN THE TIMING: THE RHYTHM OF SOCIAL INTERACTIONS (WYERN_U23PSY)

Year of Entry: 2023

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Application deadline

22 February 2023

Location

UEA Campus

Start date

October 2023

Mode of study

Full and part-time applications welcomed

Funding type

Competition funded (students worldwide)

Programme type

PhD

Project Overview

Though we often don’t give it a lot of thought, the most productive and pleasant social exchanges are characterised by a predictable rhythm of action and reaction. As social actors, we are capable of smooth conversational turn-taking and coordinated movements – but we do not always achieve it. The PhD project will examine variability in how rhythmic interactions are (due to individual, dyadic, or contextual factors) and what the consequences are of that variability. There is scope for the PhD student to develop these basic research questions in a direction of their choosing.

When applying for this project, please select that you are applying with your own research proposal, selecting Psychology as the subject area and including the project title within the 'Research Title and Summary' section of the application. If you have any questions about the application process, please email us.

Entry Requirements

Acceptable first degree in Psychology or cognate subject and a Research Methods Masters in Psychology, or equivalent qualification.

Funding

This PhD project is in a competition for a Faculty of Social Sciences funded studentship. The studentship covers full tuition fees for Home or International students, a tax-free maintenance grant equivalent to UKRI studentship rates (currently £17,688) and a research training support grant (currently £750 per year).

For further information, please see Studentships and Stipends and for information on maintenance grant levels.

Please also see the UEA Studentship terms and conditions.

References

i) Templeton, E. M., Chang, L. J., Reynolds, E. A., Cone LeBeaumont, M. D., & Wheatley, T. (2022). Fast response times signal social connection in conversation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 119(4), e2116915119.

ii) Wohltjen, S., & Wheatley, T. (2021). Eye contact marks the rise and fall of shared attention in conversation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(37), e2106645118.

iii) Schmidt, R. C., & Richardson, M. J. (2008). Dynamics of interpersonal coordination. In Coordination: Neural, behavioral and social dynamics (pp. 281-308). Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg.

iv) Happé, F., Cook, J. L., & Bird, G. (2017). The structure of social cognition: In (ter) dependence of sociocognitive processes. Annual review of psychology, 68(1), 243-267.

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