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Data Mgmt. Spec. 2 - Climate and Communities Social Scientist

Employer
Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission
Location
Douglas, AK
Closing date
May 29, 2023

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Job Description

Group Definition: Data Management Specialists (Social Sciences) use a background in the social sciences as they assist in the population, maintenance, enhancement and distribution of databases. They locate, obtain, standardize, enter, verify, and correct various data sets related to project goals and work plans.

Position/Project Specifics:

This position will assist on a project that will develop network models for south-central and southeast Alaska to improve communities' and resource managers' knowledge of socioecological system dynamics in response to ocean acidification (OA) and to enable these stakeholders to assess potential vulnerabilities and adaptation strategies. Participatory workshops with stakeholders will gather information on drivers and barriers that shape adaptive capacity and synthesize this information in socioecological network models that will enable stakeholders to better evaluate points of vulnerability and identify key adaptive strategies. The project will develop decision-support tools that are responsive to stakeholder concerns; reflect local community priorities and their ecological, social, economic, and management context; and synthesize the best available science. The position will work on all phases of the project, assisting with scoping meetings with principal investigators and key informants; conducting focus groups and semi-structured interviews; developing network models; analyzing and reporting the results as well as working with economic and ecological modelers to incorporate social system variables into integrated models.

Essential Functions: (The functions listed below are characteristic of the type and level of work associated with this group and pay band. They are not all-inclusive. Individual positions may perform some or all, as well as other similar work.)

At the lower end of the range, employees:

  • Conduct outreach to key stakeholders and development of protocols for participatory workshops including individualized exercises and group discussions.
  • Work with local member of each study community to ensure broad, representative participation.
  • Assist with conducting participatory workshops and analyzing results.
  • Compile project data using social science data techniques and software.
  • Develop qualitative network models and fuzzy cognitive maps during participatory workshops and afterwards with principal investigators.
  • Assist in running perturbations on network models and analyzing results.
  • Develop protocols for ground truthing results from network model perturbations with stakeholders.
  • Examine adaptive strategies and capacities within the communities to ocean acidification perturbations.
  • Extract relevant data which may be presented in many different text and numeric formats, reports, tables, graphics, or figures.
  • Create queries and summaries for reports.
  • Prepare and manipulate various data and graphic outputs for use in reports, presentations and internet applications, using standardized retrieval scripts.
At the upper end of the range, employees:
  • Develop and implement databases and libraries of social science data. Includes assistance with coding of participatory workshop outputs and development of network models.
  • Produce written research and statistical reports (including graphs, tables, maps, and text), data sets, and data summaries using a variety of analytical techniques and software tools. This involves the use, modification, and development of database retrieval scripts.
  • Document data handling and reporting to ensure consistency and validity of data between and within sites.
  • Maintain and update data catalogs, data catalog directories, and metadata.
  • Perform system maintenance and backups.
  • Participate in project team meetings, including discussing social science project results and mechanisms for incorporating them into ecological models.
Knowledge Required by the Position:

The employee must have knowledge of:
  • Network modeling including development of fuzzy cognitive maps with stakeholders
  • Social sciences and qualitative methods including for example focus groups, semi-structured interviews, participatory methods, or others
  • Fisheries management regimes in the U.S.
  • Qualitative and quantitative data evaluation including for example use of grounded theory for coding, basic regression models, qualitative network models
  • Personal computers and software packages and applications for databases, spreadsheets, and word processing
  • Data management concepts, principles, and methods
  • Technical documentation methods and procedures including for peer reviewed literature
sufficient to: input and code data; structure data dictionaries; edit, combine and manipulate data; and/or provide reports for users. This knowledge allows the employee to assess or interpret the significance of the results and relate that to the overall objective of the assignment.

Additional Mandatory Skills:
  • MS Excel
  • MS Word
  • oral communication skills including giving oral presentations at scientific conferences
  • writing technical documentation including peer reviewed literature
  • Mental Modeler
Additional Desirable Skills:
  • STATA
  • R
  • MAXQDA
  • Python


Physical Demands:

The work is generally sedentary, although there may be some nominal walking or standing for short periods of time, or carrying of light loads of papers, books, reports, etc. that require only moderate physical ability and physical stress.

Work Environment:

The work area is adequately lighted, heated, and ventilated. The work involves the common risks or discomforts typical of office, meeting rooms, libraries, and the like.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualification Requirements:

A range of experience and education may be presented. Candidates must present one year of Specialized Experience** AND four years of successfully completed education above high school in anthropology, economics, statistics, or any other field that provides the same knowledge. An equivalent combination of experience and education is also qualifying.

**Specialized Experience is experience that equips the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position and is typically in or related to the work of the position being filled. To be creditable, Specialized Experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled.

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