Postdoctoral researcher " Weaponisation of Ideas: US- Competition Symbolic Field

Organisation/Company Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) Research Field Language sciences » Other Political sciences » Other Researcher Profile Recognised Researcher (R2) Final date to receive applications 15 Mar 2026 - 22:59 (UTC) Country Belgium Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?

No

1 - Working at the VUB

For more than 50 years, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel has stood for f
reedom, equality and solidarity
, and this is very much alive on our campuses among students and staff alike.

At the VUB, you will find a diverse collection of personalities: innovators pur sang, but above all people who are 100% their authentic selves
. With some 4,000 employees
, we are the largest Dutch-speaking employer, in the private sector, in Brussels
; an international city with which we are only too happy to connect and where (around) our 4 campuses are located.

Add to this our principle of free research - in which self-reflection, a critical attitude and an open, creative mind around scientific and social issues are central - and you have a university that is fundamentally groundbreaking and pioneering in education and research. In short:
the VUB all over again
.

Moreover, the VUB is a member of EUTOPIA
, an alliance of like-minded European universities, all ready to reinvent themselves.

The
Brussels School of Governance
, Department Institute for European Studies
, Research Group
European security in the Indo-Pacific age
is looking for a postdoctoral researcher with a grant
.

More concretely your work package,
for the validation of your doctoral research
, contains:

While International Relations scholarship has extensively examined the military, economic and technological dimensions of US–China rivalry, this project focuses on its ideational and symbolic dimensions. It investigates how ideological, cultural and civilisational narratives are mobilised as instruments of power and how they contribute to the construction of adversarial collective identities.

Grounded in International Relations theory and discourse theory, the project analyses US and Chinese narratives between 2000 and 2024 across multiple symbolic fields, including official political discourse, academic debates and selected cultural outputs. Methodologically, it adopts a mixed-methods approach, combining machine-learning–enhanced text-as-data analysis with qualitative discourse analysis.

The project aims to produce a set of high-quality scholarly outputs, including peer-reviewed journal articles, a research monograph and an edited volume, alongside policy-oriented publications and expert workshops. You will contribute to the collection, organisation and analysis of large textual corpora (English- and Chinese-language), the development of analytical categories and indicators and the interpretation of discursive patterns related to identity, ideology and strategic rivalry.

The project places strong emphasis on collaborative research, methodological pluralism and publication-oriented teamwork, and is particularly suited to candidates interested in combining theoretical work in International Relations and discourse theory with hands-on empirical analysis using qualitative and computational methods.

You will devote most of your working time to research. Additional tasks may include limited teaching activities, event organisation, and contributions to the broader activities of CSDS. You are expected to publish in peer-reviewed journals and actively contribute to the project’s collective outputs.

For this function, our
Brussels Humanities, Sciences & Engineering Campus (Elsene)will serve as your home base.

3 - Profile

What do we expect from you?

• You hold a PhD in International Relations, Political Science or a closely related discipline.
• You demonstrate an excellent academic track record;
• You are fluent in English (knowledge of additional languages is an asset);
• You have a strong interest in great power competition, strategic narratives, discourse or identity politics.

The following will be…