Applied Pshycology Curriculum

1) Cultural Tightness and Relational Mobility in Predicting the “Dark” Profiles of Calling: A Cross-Cultural Latent Profile Analysis

In a world where meaning and purpose has become an established currency in attracting talent and negotiating hirings (Ellerbeck, 2024; PricewaterhouseCoopers, 2024), approaching work a s a calling is both the ultimate subjective experience of work success and an asset for organizations. We define calling as the perception of a passion and a transcendent force toward involvement in a life role that pervades thoughts, provides a sense of purpose and identity, motivates sacrifices, and entails a prosocial contribution. The benefits of calling are multiple and well-established, but there are some unidentified conditions where calling seems to increase workaholism and exploitation. PhD scholars focusing on the “dark side of calling” will try to explain how and when calling is dangerous in a dynamic, welcoming, and authentic environment that is committed to Open and Transparent Science. Daily work will involve analyzing the literature, designing surveys, managing complex datasets, and contributing to publications. Students will benefit from individualized mentorship, training in cross-cultural research methodologies, and lively weekly lab meetings where the whole team share research ideas and feedback.

In partnership with the University of Graz (Austria)

Contact person: Prof. Michelangelo Vianello

Sociology Curriculum

1) La partecipazione dei cittadini alla ricerca scientifica e all’innovazione tecnologica

La ricerca scientifica si sta aprendo sempre più alla partecipazione pubblica, incoraggiando iniziative che coinvolgono i cittadini e altre figure di non-esperti nei processi della ricerca scientifica e di innovazione tecnologica in un contesto in cui i finanziamenti europei parlano apertamente di co-produzione della conoscenza scientifica e dell’innovazione tecnologica. Le forme più diffuse di partecipazione abbracciano diverse modalità. Si spazia dal coinvolgimento di gruppi portatori di interesse (stakeholders), alla semplice interrogazione dell’opinione pubblica attraverso sondaggi fino effettuare campagne di reclutamento di cittadini per la generazione di dati (citizen science). La borsa di dottorato è volta a finanziare un progetto che, secondo l’approccio degli Science and Technology Studies (STS), esplori le diverse forme di partecipazione. Allo scopo di evidenziare le ambiguità e i loro limiti, il progetto dovrà prevedere sia l’analisi della dimensione discorsiva sia quella pratica delle diverse forme di partecipazione all’interno dei percorsi di ricerca scientifica e innovazione tecnologica. I potenziali casi di studio includono (ma non si limitano a) la transizione energetica, la biodiversità e l’inquinamento ambientale.

Citizen Participation in Scientific Research and Technological Innovation

Scientific research is becoming increasingly open to public participation, with initiatives that involve citizens and non-experts in the processes of scientific research and technological innovation being encouraged. This is occurring within a context in which European funding openly speaks of co-production of scientific knowledge and technological innovation. The most prevalent forms of participation encompass a range of modalities. These range from the involvement of stakeholder groups to the simple questioning of public opinion through polls and the execution of campaigns to recruit citizens for the generation of data (citizen science). The doctoral fellowship is intended to fund a project that, according to the Science and Technology Studies (STS) approach, explores different forms of participation. The objective of the project is to shed light on the ambiguities and limitations inherent in these various forms of participation within the contexts of scientific research and technological innovation pathways. Potential case studies may include, but are not limited to, the energy transition, biodiversity, and environmental pollution.

Contact person: Prof. Federico Neresini

2) Innovazione nella Gestione del Capitale Umano e nell’Utilizzo dei Dati nelle Pubbliche Amministrazioni: Un Approccio Integrato per l’Efficienza e l’Efficacia dei Servizi Pubblici

Le pubbliche amministrazioni stanno attraversando una fase di trasformazione significativa, caratterizzata da due aspetti fondamentali: la gestione e valorizzazione delle persone che vi lavorano e l’uso delle tecnologie digitali e i dati, come l’Intelligenza Artificiale e i big data analytics, per migliorare le politiche e i servizi. Questi due aspetti sono strettamente interconnessi tra loro, poiché un uso intelligente dei dati favorisce una gestione efficace del capitale umano e, al contempo, servizi basati sui dati richiedono personale qualificato e ben formato. Entrambi gli aspetti sono, altresì, importanti per la modernizzazione della pubblica amministrazione (PA), in particolare a livello locale. Il progetto di ricerca si propone, pertanto, di indagare il nesso esistente tra le due componenti, analizzando gli aspetti positivi e le opportunità che le applicazioni della digitalizzazione creano nella PA ma anche i potenziali rischi connessi alla sua diffusione, per giungere all’elaborazione di un modello teorico innovativo che consenta di migliorare le pratiche di gestione del capitale umano, l’efficienza e l’efficacia dei servizi pubblici e la soddisfazione delle persone che lavorano nella PA. La metodologia di ricerca prevede l’analisi sistematica della letteratura, la raccolta di dati, la somministrazione di una survey e di interviste in profondità, lo studio di casi di innovazione nella PA e la definizione di un modello teorico che integri gestione del capitale umano con l’uso dei dati.

Innovation in Human Capital Management and Data Utilization in Public Administrations: An Integrated Approach for the Efficiency and Effectiveness of Public Services

Public administrations are undergoing a significant transformation, characterized by two key aspects: the management and empowerment of the people who work in them and the use of data, such as Artificial Intelligence and big data analytics, to improve policies and services. These two aspects are closely interconnected, as the intelligent use of data supports effective human capital management, while data-driven services require highly skilled and well-trained personnel. Both aspects are also crucial for the modernization of public administration, particularly at the local level.

The research project aims to investigate the existing link between these two components, analyzing the benefits and opportunities that digitalization applications create within public administration, as well as the potential risks associated with their expansion. The goal is to develop an innovative theoretical model that enhances human capital management practices, that improve the efficiency and effectiveness of public services, and the satisfaction of public administration employees.

The project adopts a qualitative-quantitative research methodology based on desk and empirical research. The Ph.D. student is expected to conduct a systematic literature review, to collect data from organizations, to conduct a survey and some in-depth interviews with key-informants, to study empirical cases of innovation in local public administrations, and to define of a theoretical model integrating human capital management with data utilization.

Contact person: Prof. Paolo Magaudda and Prof. Giorgia Nesti

3) Linguistic Racism in multilingual areas. An interdisciplinary approach (LING-RACE)

Racism is a complex and multifaced phenomenon that does not only encompass discrimination but also embraces discrimination of people based on their perceived cultural diversities (Barker 1981; Tankosić and Dovchin 2021). One of the many social expressions of racism is one that takes language as a pretext for legitimizing and perpetrating inequality, stigmatisation and exclusion (Dovchin 2020; Skutnabb-Kangas 2015; Weber 2015; Flores and Rosa 2015). The doctoral research project „Linguistic Racism in Multilingual Areas“ is jointly promoted by the University of Padova (PhD programme in Social Sciences) and the Center for Migration and Diversity of Eurac Research, a private research center based in Bolzano/Bozen (South Tyrol). The project adopts an interdisciplinary perspective to investigate linguistic racism in the housing market as it is experienced by linguistically diverse people in multilingual areas. The doctoral work can be comparative or a single-case study, but must have (or include) a focus on the multilingual area of South Tyrol, in Italy.

Research on linguistic racism is particularly timely, not only because of the increasingly superdiverse nature of today’s societies, but also because of the increase in incidents of both covert and overt racism (including linguistic racism) since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic worldwide, e.g. those against the global Asian community (Dovchin 2020; Tankosić and Dovchin 2021). Newly emerging forms of racism, such as also linguistic racism, lack institutional responses. The work conducted by the doctoral candidate will thus have important implications: it will contribute to an understanding of the phenomenon from an emic perspective and will be useful in the development of strategies and interventions against linguistic racism that can impact public discourses on language as well as language policies.

This PhD is based on and funded through a cooperation between the University of Padova and Eurac Research. The topic bridges the research interests of the Department of Philosophy, Sociology, Pedagogy and Applied Psychology of the University of Padova and those of the Center for Migration and Diversity of Eurac Research. It contributes to research on migration and integration governance by disentangling various forms of racism and the institutional responses to them, as well as by evaluating the positions of the various actors working towards preventing racism.

In partnership with Eurac.

Contact person: Prof. Paolo Magaudda