About this role
Post Status: Specific Purpose Contract
Location: Trinity College Dublin, The University of Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland
The Purpose of the Role:
We invite applications for two postdoctoral positions at the Institute of Neuroscience & School of Psychology, Trinity College Dublin. Successful applicants will engage in experimental, analytical, and computational research at the intersection of human decision neuroscience and cognitive computational neuroscience.
These positions are funded by the European Research Council (ERC) Consolidator Grant “The Dynamics of Attribute Weighting in Multiattribute Choice” (DYNATT) awarded to Prof. Konstantinos Tsetsos. The project aims to describe the neural and computational mechanisms underlying preference variability. In particular, the project will describe how the human brain shapes, maintains and revises preferences for different attributes. We will utilise magnetencephalography (OPM-MEG) to decode preferences for different attributes at the level of single multiattribute decisions. This will enable us to chart the temporal dynamics of multiattribute preferences across successive decisions and that way identify the underlying mechanisms that shape these dynamics.
The project sits at the intersection of decision science and cognitive neuroscience. It aims to offer mechanistic insights into when, how, and why preferences change. Beyond advancing theory, these insights have the potential to inform clinical research on pathological preference variability or persistence (e.g., in addiction); and to guide policy making, by for example probing how stable or plastic specific consumer tradeoffs (e.g., between monetary and environmental attributes) are.
The postdoctoral researchers will be based in the Irrationality lab (https://www.ktsetsoslab.net) , a cognitive & decision neuroscience group led by Prof. Konstantinos Tsetsos. The lab pioneers the computational modelling of human decision-making grounded in neurophysiological data. Our overarching goal is to explain behavioural regularities in human choice (including puzzling effects, such as preference reversals) at the level of neural mechanisms.
Salary: Appointment will be made on the IUA salary scale Researcher Salary Scales | Irish Universities Association at a point in line with Government Pay Policy (Level PD1 / PD2)
Hours of Work: Hours of work for academic staff are those as prescribed under Public Service Agreements. For further information please following link below: https://www.tcd.ie/hr/assets/pdf/academic-hours-public-service-agreement.pdf
Closing Date: 12 Noon (Irish Standard Time), 30 January 2026
Please visit Trinity’s Jobs Portal to view the full job description at https://jobs.tcd.ie/
Further Information
Candidates wishing to discuss the post informally should contact Professor Konstantinos Tsetsos at E: [email protected]
Application Information
Applicants should submit a full Curriculum Vitae to include the names and contact details of 2 referees (including email addresses), a cover letter up to one page describing research vision, skills, career goals and 2 samples of their work.
Name: Professor Konstantinos Tsetsos Email Address: [email protected]
Trinity is an equal opportunities employer, and we encourage applications from talented people of all backgrounds.