The increasing complexity of societal challenges, from climate change and energy transition to social inclusion and equity, highlights the importance of adopting innovative approaches to foster positive change and shape societies and territories of the future. In various fields — such as green transportation, biodiversity preservation, waste reduction, inclusive urban planning, and equitable access to education and resources — new strategies are essential to address these pressing issues. Virtual worlds can impact society significantly through applications such as video games, augmented reality games, and virtual reality (VR) simulations, thanks to the engagement and the perspective shift they foster. They can immerse users in unfamiliar places and situations by allowing them to take on different perspectives through avatars or virtual bodies. Research is needed to explore new ways to experience and understand our environment and society, impersonate other people or entities, and then assess how this affects cognition and behavior in the long term. The PhD candidate will research methods and techniques for creating engaging virtual worlds that promote positive behavior change through immersive, engaging experiences. In strict collaboration with a multidisciplinary research team, the candidate will develop immersive applications and contribute to design experiments that compare the approach with standard gamification techniques.

Required Candidate Skills and Competencies: – Familiarity with at least one of the following fields: video games, gamification, serious games, VR. – Programming experience (preferably one of C++, C#, Java, JavaScript). – Experience with statistical analysis and data visualization software (ideally one of R Studio, Jupyter/PyCharm, Matlab, or similar). – Good knowledge of written and spoken English.

Ideal skills (already acquired or to be acquired during the PhD): – Experience creating virtual environments and/or 3D models (Blender, Maya, 3DSMax, or similar), for applications that run on screens or in VR. – Experience with development tools (Unity, Unreal Engine, Godot, or similar). – User research experience (questionnaires, interviews).