Contrat postdoctoral

Organisation/Company CNRS Department Laboratoire Interdisciplinaire Solidarités, Sociétés, Territoires Research Field Sociology Juridical sciences Criminology Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Application Deadline 14 Oct 2026
- 23:59 (UTC) Country France Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 35 Offer Starting Date 1 Jan 2027 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

Offer Description

Working-class voting displays considerable variation across time and space: depending on the period and the place, the same social groups may support radically opposed political currents. To explain this variability, so-called contextual approaches to voting emphasise voters' social environment rather than their individual characteristics alone.
In this project, we hypothesise that the effect of this "context" is largely the effect of local networks of relationships, which constitute an explanatory link connecting the properties of territories to individual attitudes. We therefore propose to use the tools of Social Network Analysis (SNA) to reconstruct the networks of interpersonal relationships in four areas of south-west France and to study their effects on electoral choices.
The main survey consists in collecting personal network questionnaires from 800 respondents through face-to-face interviews, in rural and working-class areas of Occitanie divided between left-wing voting, far-right voting and abstention. We plan two waves of data collection, the first around the time of the 2027 presidential election and the second a year later. This localised quantitative survey will be complemented by a qualitative component in the same areas, following a mixed-methods approach.

You will focus on two tasks: conducting the qualitative component of the survey, and supporting the collection of questionnaires.

• Qualitative component: this involves carrying out fieldwork in two areas of Occitanie (out of four possible ones: Ariège, Aude, Gard and Tarn; the choice of the two selected is to be discussed). The fieldwork will run over the whole duration of the contract, with a regular presence in the field. It will consist mainly of semi-structured interviews and, secondarily, of observation in public spaces. You will work in coordination with two other researchers present in the field (Timothée Chabot and Félicie Roux), and will also be in regular contact with the other team members working on the quantitative part of the survey.
• Questionnaire component: from February to July 2027, and again from February to April 2028, the NEMO team will organise a face-to-face collection of questionnaires, recruiting respondents through snowball sampling. The collection will be led by research engineers, whom you will support by approaching potential respondents through your fieldwork or by administering some of the questionnaires yourself.

In addition to collecting survey data, your contribution will include writing one or more scientific publications, alone or in collaboration with other team members, as well as taking part in NEMO's other activities (discussions on the project's methodology, seminars, etc.).

You will join the ANR project team and be hosted on the LISST premises at the Université Toulouse Jean Jaurès campus. A workstation and a computer will be made available to you, and you will be able to take part in all the laboratory's activities (seminars, team meetings, etc.).
Your work-related travel within Occitanie will be covered. Moreover, since a continuous presence in the field is required, it is preferable to live in or around Toulouse, or close to the fieldwork sites (Ariège, Aude, Gard, Tarn).
Funding is available after the end of the contract to support your attendance at conferences and congresses presenting the work carried out. In addition, at the end of your contract you will retain access to all the anonymised qualitative and quantitative data you helped collect, which you may draw on in your own research.

Candidates must meet the following

requirements:

• A doctorate in sociology, political science, social geography, or a related discipline. The thesis must have been defended less than 7 years before recruitment. If the thesis has not yet been defended at the time of application, a certificate may be provided specifying the defence date.
• Experience in conducting fieldwork in rural and/or working-class settings, as well as in qualitative research methods (ethnography, interviews).
• A command of spoken French sufficient to carry out the fieldwork.