Sunday, April 20, 2008

Dutch & Phonology of Aphasia: PhD Student, Leiden University, Netherland

Dutch & Phonology of Aphasia: PhD Student, Leiden University, Netherlands
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Institution/Organization: Leiden University
Department: LUCL
Web Address: http://www.lucl.leidenuniv.nl

Level: PhD

Duties: Research

Specialty Areas: Phonology; Psycholinguistics

Required Language(s): Dutch (nld)

Description:

One PhD Position / promotieplaats full time

Vacancy number: to be announced

Project description:

Studying the phonology of aphasia in a research project on ‘Child language,
aphasia and general sound laws revisited.’

Most of the recent research into sound structure in aphasia has been conducted
within the area of psycholinguistics. Phonological errors have been studied,
plus the functional loci of these errors, but much less the phonological
representations or the phonological grammars that could give a theoretical
account of these errors. This project will contribute to working out a model of
aphasia which is inspired by phonological theory as well as psycholinguistic
modeling, by studying the linguistic principles that could govern the structure
of consonant and vowel inventories in the speech of people with aphasia, while
talking into account findings from psycholinguistic and neurolinguistic studies.
The focus will be on data from Dutch. Since the amount of reliable phonological
data of aphasics is not very large, the candidate will have to invest a
substantial amount of time collecting relevant data, both from production and
from perception. Patients will be recruited from a Rotterdam revalidation
centre, which will also make available to us a relatively large sample of
recorded data. All these different types of data will have to be interpreted in
collaboration with a PhD student working on segment inventories in child
language acquisition, and with a postdoc working on the typology of segment
inventories, in a research project which has as its main goal reexamining Roman
Jakobson’s famous claims about the role of a phonological feature in child
language, aphasia and general sound laws.

Tasks:
- performing repetition and naming experiments and collecting of spontaneous
speech samples with aphasics;
- performing phoneme detection studies using mismatch negativity tests,
measured in an EEG;
- giving a theoretical interpretation of the data, in collaboration with
colleagues and supervisors;
- reporting the results in international journals and a dissertation;
- presenting the results in national and international conferences;
- following graduate courses offered at the LUCL graduate school.

Requirements:
- an MA or MPHil degree in general linguistics, theoretical or
patholinguistics, or a comparable field;
- demonstrable interest in both phonological theory and experimental research;
- good working knowledge of Dutch and English;
- good organisational and contactual skills;
- independence of mind.

More information about the position and project is available at
http://www.lucl.leidenuniv.nl/index.php3?m=&c=571 and

Conditions of employment:
The successful applicant will be appointed at the department TUCL for one year
and after a positive evaluation, followed by a fixed- term period of three years.

Gross salary will be ? 2000,- per month in the first year, gradually rising,
also depending upon the evaluation, to ? 2612,- per month in the final year
conform the Collective Labour Agreement Dutch Universities.

Applications:
Please send your letter (in Dutch or English) within two weeks after the
publication of these vacancy, with your curriculum vitae, marks and motivation
under indication of the vacancy number on letter and envelop to: De afdeling
P&O, t.a.v. mw. E.M. Bakker.

Application Deadline: 15-May-2008

Mailing Address for Applications:
Attn: Ms E.M. Bakker
Faculteit der Letteren
Postbus 9515
Leiden 2300 RA
Netherlands

Contact Information:
Prof.Dr. Marc van Oostendorp
marc.van.oostendorp@meertens.knaw.nl