PhD Position "Agentic Adherence Promotion Interventions in Pediatric Digital Biomarker Studies" (m/w/d)

Project Context

Digital biomarker studies with children and adolescents, incl. family members, increasingly rely on smartphones, wearables, and brief in-the-moment self-reports to capture real-world signals such as activity, sleep, stress, or symptoms. However, many studies struggle with sustained participation and data completeness, especially when study protocols extend over weeks or months and when families must coordinate devices, appointments, and daily routines.

This PhD project explores how agentic interventions can ethically and effectively promote adherence while minimizing burden and strengthening trust with minors and their caregivers.

One Core Use Case: SNF Project KIND

A central applied setting for this PhD will be the accepted SNF project KIND (Kinder und Neuropathie bei Diabetes), which investigates the link between type 1 diabetes management and nerve vitality in children and adolescents. The project combines clinical measures (for example neurophysiology and ultrasound) with free-living digital monitoring (wearable-based physical activity, sleep, heart rate variability, plus CGM-derived metrics) over repeated periods and follow-ups.

In the KIND study design, wearables are introduced and explained to participants during an extra visit, including the possibility of home visits, and lifestyle tracking is conducted for several weeks around clinical assessment

We offer a fully funded PhD Position (100%, 4 years from 01.04.2026 or later by arrangement) at the School of Medicine and Institute of Technology Management, University of St. Gallen (HSG) on Agentic Interventions for the Promotion of Adherence to Digital Biomarker Studies in Children and Adolescents.
The PhD is in Management and will be pursued in the Behavioral Science Track at HSG.

Desk Research and Evidence Synthesis

• Conduct desk research on adherence challenges and engagement strategies in pediatric digital health research
• Lead a systematic review of factors influencing adherence to digital biomarker study protocols, with a special focus on children and adolescents

Designing and Evaluating Agentic Interventions

• Translate behavioral theory and empirical evidence into practical intervention concepts (for example tailored prompts, adaptive goal setting, supportive micro-interactions, caregiver-aware support)
• Define design principles that balance adherence gains with burden, fairness, privacy, transparency, and age-appropriateness
• Build prototypes with PRECIOUS and collaborate on integration into study workflows (in coordination with the broader project team)

Field Research with Clinical and Family Partners

• Work closely with clinical partners at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Switzerland and associated care settings
• Engage with families of children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes, including interviews and home visits where appropriate, to co-design, test, and refine adherence support strategies

Rigor and Publication

• Plan and execute robust evaluations (for example longitudinal studies, experiments, micro-randomized approaches, or A/B tests where feasible)
• Publish in strong international outlets spanning behavioral science, information systems, digital health, and technology management

Your Academic Environment

• Degree: PhD in Management (Behavioral Science)
• Institution: University of St. Gallen (HSG)
• Supervision: Prof. Dr. Tobias Kowatsch, School of Medicine HSG & Institute for Implementation Science in Health Care, University of Zurich & D-MTEC, ETH Zurich, Prof. Dr. Felix Wortmann, Institute of Technology Management HSG & D-MTEC, ETH Zurich
• Clinical collaboration for the KIND use case: Children's Hospital of Eastern Switzerland and diabetes care partners, with an interdisciplinary team spanning pediatric neurology, diabetology, and digital biomarkers.

Required

• Master's degree in behavioral science, technology management, business informatics, computer science, machine learning, or a related field
• Strong interest in behavior change, digital health, and human-centered technology
• Excellent quantitative skills (experiments, longitudinal analysis, causal inference, or applied ML, LLM-based agentic interventions), with openness to mixed-methods work
• Strong German language skills (needed for close collaboration with clinical partners and families), plus very good English for academic publishing
• Motivation to work in applied clinical contexts and to engage directly with families (including interviews and home visits)

Desired

• Experience with digital health studies, wearables, mobile sensing, or conversational AI and user interfaces
• Experience designing interventions, services, or user journeys in sensitive contexts (minors, healthcare, family settings)
• Familiarity with research ethics and data protection in human-subjects research

"A place where knowledge is created" - As one of Europe's leading universities of economics and business administration, the University of St.Gallen (HSG), Switzerland, is committed to the education of over 10'000 students. The HSG is one of the largest employers in the region and provides an attractive and innovative environment for more than 3'500 researchers, educators and professional staff.