The Institute of Culture Studies (IKW) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW), Austria’s largest non-university institution for basic research, is offering a position as

Praedoc (F/M/X)

(20 hours per week, 50 %)

for a period of 36 months, starting 1 January 2027 (no later than 1 March)

The position is part of the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) project “Politics of Truth (POLTRUTH): Rethinking Truth in a ‘Post-Truth’ World” led by PD Dr Gerald Posselt. Against the backdrop of the global rise of authoritarian populism and the ubiquity of lies and fake news in the public sphere, the project investigates the complex relationship between truth and politics from both historical and systematic perspectives. It is based on the premise that social crises and conflicts affect not only the political sphere but also a society’s regime of truth, thereby calling into question previously self-evident norms, practices, and institutions. The project aims to develop a political theory of truth that accounts for our contemporary condition, thus also shedding new light on historical events and phenomena such as the American Revolution, the French Revolution, Marxism, and fascism. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to pursue their own PhD project, which ideally falls in the thematic scope of POLTRUTH. They will assist the PI in examining the various historical phenomena in terms of their specific politics of truth and their significance for the crisis of the current truth regime.

Your Tasks

• Completion of your doctoral thesis
• Contribution to the project’s theoretical development, to joint research activities and findings
• Assistance with organising events and publishing co-edited volumes
• Presentation of your research at international conferences and workshops
• Publication of research articles in peer-reviewed journals and/or edited volumes

Your Profile

• Completed Master’s degree in philosophy, political theory, political history of ideas, or another related discipline
• Solid qualification in political philosophy, political theory, and the history of political ideas
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in German and English
• Organisational and teamwork skills
• Proficiency in using Office programmes; experience in editing and proofreading texts

Deadline for application: 7 October 2026

For more information and to apply, visit

https://www.oeaw.ac.at/jobs?jh=retjw73c2f4r6dd8spiwrwrouyqfmkb

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PD Dr Gerald Posselt

Institute for Culture Studies | Austrian Academy of Sciences

Department of Philosophy | University of Vienna

Austrian Science Fund (FWF) Project “Politics of Truth”

„Politik und Aphasie: Zur Polarität von Metapher und Metonymie“, in: Zeitschrift für Praktische Philosophie 12 (1), 2025, 369–398. https://doi.org/10.22613/zfpp/12.1.16

"Aporias of Truth and Politics: Arendt, Foucault, and the Practice of Truth-Telling." Genealogy+Critique 11 (1), 2025, 1–31. https://doi.org/10.16995/gc.17038