Job opening Interdisciplinary Postdoctoral Researcher in Legal History andor Social and Behavioural Studies
Job opening Interdisciplinary Postdoctoral Researcher in Legal History andor Social and Behavioural Studies
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Job Description
Tilburg University Tilburg Law School
is looking for an
Interdisciplinary Postdoctoral Researcher in Legal History and/or Social and Behavioural Studies
Department: Public Law and Governance
Location: Tilburg
Contract size: 0.8 - 1.0 fte
Full-time gross monthly salary: 4.728 6.433
Contract duration: 17 months
Desired starting date: 19 January 2026
Tilburg University is hiring a postdoctoral researcher (1.0 FTE) in law history the social and behavioural sciences for the project ECHO: Emotions and Terrorism in the Eastern Question (). The project investigates how fear shaped international law challenging its rationalist Eurocentric and state-centric biases. You will analyse diplomatic legal and literary sources to investigate how legal labels public emotions and shifting notions of sovereignty influenced protection trust and international security. The work invites engagement with wider questions on law emotion and justice in moments of political upheaval and you will join a multidisciplinary team working across multiple historical contexts.
Your position
Tilburg University is hiring a full-time postdoctoral researcher (1.0 FTE 17 months) in law history or social and behavioural sciences with an expertise in the study of emotions for the project ECHO: Emotions and Terrorism in the Eastern Question (). The project is led by Dr. Zülâl Muslu (Tilburg Law School). ECHO examines how fear shaped international law especially in the late Ottoman Empire critically reassessing its rationalist and Eurocentric biases through the lens of the history of emotions. By studying legal diplomatic and literary sources the project investigates how emotional discourses influenced legal protection public trust and ideas of international the longer term it aims to build knowledge and networks that contribute not only to academic scholarship but also to deeper public and institutional understandings of the historical and emotional dimensions of law.
As postdoctoral researcher you will focus on methodological approaches to the study of law and emotions drawing on archival sources textual analysis and relevant literature. Your work will involve mapping and critically assessing methodological approaches in the study of law and emotions and applying them to the projects historical material while possibly engaging with perspectives from psychology and the social and behavioural sciences with scope to contribute to further methodological development. You will prepare academic publications and play a key role in shaping and delivering an international scholarly event that brings together leading researchers in the field. There will be room to bring your own thematic and methodological interests into the projects scope.
You will join the legal history group within the Department of Public Law & Governance (PLG) integrating into a vibrant international and interdisciplinary research environment. The PLG department brings together scholars from law history political science and related fields fostering collaboration across disciplines. Within this setting the legal history team offers an open collegial atmosphere where sharing work-in-progress providing constructive feedback and methodological reflection are central to our way of working.
The position is primarily research-focused with participation in administrative tasks including dissemination activities through academic and public channels. Depending on your interests there may be opportunities to contribute to teaching in the field of legal history and related areas. The role offers a supportive environment for further developing your professional network and academic profile in emotion research legal history and critical approaches to law.
Your profile
Tilburg University is curious about how you can contribute to our research education societal impact and to the team you will be joining. Therefore we would like to get the best possible picture of your knowledge skills and personality. Below are the qualifications and qualities considered important for this position. We welcome applications from candidates who may not meet all of the listed requirements as we recognise that the profile outlined below involved broad interdisciplinary expertise:
Required Qualifications
- You hold a Ph.D. in law history psychology or a closely related discipline with a dissertation that engages with the study of emotions and/or relevant historical legal or socio-legal contexts.
- You have demonstrable experience in independently conducting archival research with handwritten sources from the late 19th and early 20th centuries or equivalent expertise in working with complex datasets.
- Experience in interdisciplinary research involving the study of emotions is highly desirable.
- You have a strong interest in the institutional political economic and legal history of the late 19th and early 20th centuries preferably with a focus on international law genocide studies and/or transitional justice processes.
- You possess excellent oral and written communication skills as evidenced by relevant academic publications conference presentations or other scholarly output.
- You have excellent proficiency in English both spoken and written. Ability to work with one or more languages spoken in the late Ottoman Empire is preferred; knowledge of Dutch is appreciated.
Desirable competencies
- You demonstrate scientific integrity and work independently while taking responsibility for your contributions and career development.
- You have strong analytical skills and an eye for methodological reflection.
- You are a team player who actively contributes to a collegial open and inclusive work environment sharing knowledge and engaging in constructive collaboration also beyond your immediate field.
- You are adaptable well-organised and able to balance research organisational and dissemination tasks effectively.
What do we offer
Tilburg University offers excellent benefits in a pleasant working environment:
- A position based on 0.8 - 1.0 FTE (40 hours per week).
- A salary of minimum of 4.728 and maximum 6.433 gross per month for full-time employment based on UFO profile Researcher 3 and salary scale 11. Tilburg University uses a neutral remuneration system based on relevant education and work experience.
- This is a vacancy for a temporary position in accordance with Article 2.3 paragraph 5 under b of the CLA DU. You will be given a temporary contract for the duration of 17 months.
- Vacation pay of 8% and a year-end bonus of 8.3%.
- Over 8 weeks of vacation leave.
- The opportunity to work partly on campus and partly from home with a home office allowance of 2 per day.
- Reimbursement for sustainable commuting: walking cycling and public transportation.
- A monthly internet fee of 25.
- An Options Model in which you exchange benefits for things such as additional leave more pension a bicycle or personal training at our Sports Center.
- Employees from outside the Netherlands may be eligible for the 30/20/10% tax facility.
- A pension with ABP; the most sustainable Dutch pension fund.
Training in personal development career development leadership education and research or a language course at our Language Center.
- A work culture in which we embrace differences where everyone is welcome and given equal opportunities.
- A vibrant campus in green surroundings that is easily accessible by public transport.
For more information see our website and the Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities
Information and application
Would you like to know more before applying Feel free to contact Dr. Zülâl Muslu at for substantive questions about the research; for other questions please contact Prof. Morag Goodwin ().
We cordially invite you to apply until 23 October 2025 23:59 CET; this can only be done online. Address your cover letter to Prof. Morag Goodwin and attach your order to make a good selection we also ask you to provide the following documents:
- An official copy of your university degrees
- Publication list and one or two publications
- Contact details of at least two referees
We only approach referees for candidates invited to the second round of interviews.
The first selection interviews will take place on 5 November 2025. A second interview may be requested; such interviews would take place in the week beginning 10 November 2025.
The selection committee consists of:
- Prof. Morag Goodwin Chair of Global Law and Developmentand cluster manager
- Dr. Zülâl Muslu Assistant Professor of Legal History and PI of the project ECHO
You will ideally start working for Tilburg University on 19 January 2026 but a later date in early February can be accommodated.
This job posting has been published simultaneously internally and case of equal suitability our preference is for an internal candidate.
About Tilburg University
We educate our 19500 students of 110 nationalities to become responsible leaders with knowledge skills and character. With our education and research for broad prosperity we exceedingly focus on themes such as mental and preventive care an inclusive labor market the energy transition and digitalization.
About Tilburg Law School
Tilburg Law School was founded in 1963 and has since grown into a leading faculty for law and public administration. Our education and research are distinctly innovative and interdisciplinary. We are driven by our mission to actively engage with pressing societal challenges such as new technologies sustainability and the position of vulnerable groups in the rule of law from the perspective of legal and administrative sciences. We operate in response to local regional national and international developments and collaborate closely with other disciplines such as economics behavioral and social sciences philosophy history and digital sciences. The faculty is organized into five departments: Public Law & Governance Private Business and Labour Law Criminal Law the Tilburg Institute for Law Technology & Society and Tax Law.
Our education
Tilburg Law School offers bachelors programs in Dutch Law Tax Law Business Law and the English-taught Global Law program. Of the nine legal masters programs five are offered in hybrid formats and six are taught in English. The faculty also offers both a bachelors and a masters program in Public Administration. Our education places particular emphasis on vulnerability and on those who are vulnerable in society. Through this we aim to contribute to a just and sustainable society. Tilburg Law School is a frontrunner in educational innovation and values inclusive accessible and flexible education. We train our students to become knowledgeable skilled and critical academics who are equipped to navigate the complex challenges of the evolving digital society.
Our research
The five departments of Tilburg Law School collaborate closely in four distinctive research programs focusing on globalization and law regulation of technology vulnerability in criminal law and sustainable private law relations. These research programs include both legal and public administration scholarship as well as interdisciplinary approaches.
We strongly emphasize team science encouraging researchers to work together share knowledge and strengthen one another in content and methodology.
Global Law and Governance
This research program addresses major societal challenges such as climate change globalization growing inequality the increasing influence of social media and migration. These developments call for a re-examination of issues such as the role of human rights democratic principles and structures and the regulation of non-state actors.
Application Code
Tilburg University uses the NVP job application code.
Disclaimer
The text in this job posting is the copyright property of Tilburg University. Use distribution and further publication of the job posting without the express permission of Tilburg University is not permitted and this specifically applies to use by recruitment agencies not acting directly on behalf of Tilburg University. Responses to recruitment by non-contractors of Tilburg University will not be considered.
Employment Type
Full-Time
