Full Professorship “Psychology, in particular Behavior Change and Sustainability Transformation” (W2/W3)
2025-10-16 THE SCHOOL OF SUSTAINABILITY AT LEUPHANA UNIVERSITY LÜNEBURG INVITES APPLICATIONS FOR THE FOLLOWING FULL PROFESSORSHIP:
Psychology, in particular Behavior Change and Sustainability Transformation (W2/W3)
You conduct empirical research on the psychological foundations of sustainability-related behavior and behavior change in the context of societal transformation processes. Your work focuses on how individuals make decisions and form judgments in the face of complex social, political, and environmental challenges, and how these psychological processes manifest in private, professional, or organizational contexts. Central to your research is the analysis of cognitive, emotional, and motivational determinants of human behavior, with particular attention to how people perceive, evaluate, and act upon sustainability-related information. Drawing on these insights, your research develops and validates evidence-based interventions to promote sustainable behavior. The overarching goal of your research is to advance internationally relevant psychological insights and develop approaches that foster sustainable societal transformation through a deeper understanding of individual decision-making and behavior in diverse contexts.
Methodologically, you draw on a broad range of empirical approaches, including experimental and quasi-experimental methods, longitudinal and cross-cultural studies, and/or field or observational research. Ideally, your work also integrates innovative tools and data-driven and/or AI-based methods, such as agent-based modeling, machine learning or large language models, to explore human behavior in sustainability contexts and contribute to methodological advancements in the field.
The professorship contributes to the development of psychological and behavioral science teaching in the Bachelor’s programs of the School of Sustainability, including Environmental Sciences, Global Environmental and Sustainability Sciences, Psychology, and Master’s programs in Sustainability Science. Your teaching covers key psychological perspectives on sustainability, including environmental behavior, motivation, emotion, communication, and decision-making. You will also provide training in research methods and supervise thesis projects. Courses are embedded in interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary settings and prepare students to address sustainability challenges from a behavioral science perspective.
With your work, you make a substantial contribution to advancing the role of psychology in international sustainability research and strengthen the School of Sustainability’s profile in the field of behavior change and sustainable transformation. You will be part of a unique and collaborative academic environment, working alongside both established and newly appointed professorships in sustainability psychology, embedded within the School of Sustainability. This dynamic setting offers excellent opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration, and you are expected to actively contribute to joint research projects, co-authored publications, and the acquisition of external funding within this environment.
The professorship will advance Leuphana’s overarching transformation agenda through interdisciplinary collaboration. We expect substantive contributions to the School of Sustainability (e.g., the focus project “Regenerative Society”) and to the University’s profile focus “Embracing Transformation”, aligning work with the five key subject areas (sustainability, democracy, digital cultures, entrepreneurship, organization) toward a Psychology of Transformation.
For this position, we are seeking a committed researcher with an outstanding international research profile in combination with a track record of unique ideas put into action, impacting their field as well as society. Your academic work gives evidence of innovative contributions to teaching and research, your talent for cooperating with partners inside and outside academia and your strong commitment to interdisciplinary dialogue. You have a strong publication record in international, peer-reviewed scientific journals in the above-mentioned field of expertise. Furthermore, you have experience in initiating and conducting third-party funded research projects and/or funding for research consortia; ideally you have successfully acquired third-party funding on your own preferably from renowned research funding organizations (e.g., DFG, ERC) (relative to opportunity). You have proven experience in the supervision of students (Bachelor, Master, and ideally Ph.D.) and can document your teaching experiences in seminars, and ideally also lectures, in the subject areas of this professorship.
The professional position will be filled in accordance with pay grade W2/W3 (university full professorship). Formal requirements are based on § 25 of the Lower Saxony Higher Education Act (NHG) and include a university degree in Psychology or a discipline relevant to the open position and a doctoral degree in Psychology or related fields; your aptitude for teaching and your ability to engage in independent academic research as demonstrated by the above-average quality of your dissertation, and additional academic achievements obtained, i.e. in the course of being an assistant professor, during your postdoctoral lecture qualification (German: Habilitation) or other achievements recognized as being equivalent to a postdoctoral qualification.
At Leuphana you will find an academic community that is open to changes in perspective and cultivates the dialogue among the different disciplines as well as between research and practice. With spirit and initiative, we address the challenges of civil society in the 21st century. Pursuing our idea of liberal education, our students are enabled to think, question and act upon it. Our professors foster the awareness of gender and diversity aspects in teaching as well as research.
For further information, please contact the Dean of the School of Sustainability, Prof. Dr. Harald Heinrichs (harald.heinrichs@leuphana.de) or Prof. Dr. Sebastian Wallot at the Institute of Sustainability Psychology (sebastian.wallot@leuphana.de).
Leuphana University is an equal opportunities employer. The university aims to increase its number of femaleprofessors. Qualified women are especially invited to apply. Severely disabled applicants and applicants with equivalent status will be considered preferentially in accordance with the applicable legal provisions.
Please submit your application (without submission of an application photo) consisting of the following materials in two separate PDF files: a) motivation letter, CV, full publication list, copies of academic degrees and a research concept (max. one page) and b) three most relevant publications. Please enclose the completed application form (as Excel file) with your documents. Guidance on the required application materials can be found here.
Applications should be sent preferably by email using the key word “Behavior Change and Sustainabillity Transformation” (W2/W3) to beko@leuphana.de or to the President of Leuphana University Lüneburg, Post Box 2440, Lüneburg D-21314 by November 30, 2025. Please be aware that we cannot return application documents sent physically.
By submitting your application, you consent to your data being stored and processed for the purpose of the recruitment process. Please note our Data Protection Notice for Applicants (in English or in German)
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