Open Thesis Topics

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We regularly offer exciting topics for bachelor and master theses and provide continuous supervision throughout the whole period of your work.

Typical Requirements

  • Ideally, prior participation in some of our Master courses
  • A solid knowledge of research methodology and quantitative data analysis
  • Capability to work with at least one statistical software package (R, Python, SPSS, STATA, etc.)
  • Good English writing skills

Guidelines and Template

Open Topics

We only process applications that include a CV and explain your motivation for the topic. If you are interested in writing a thesis, please contact the person responsible for the topic directly.

Research Area: Autonomous Products & Robots
Contact: Jonas Görgen

Research Area: Autonomous Products & Robots
Contact: Jonas Görgen

This Bachelor/Master Project aims to explore the evolving relationship between
consumers and AI-based products, for example investigating how social bonds
are formed or the implications of these relationships.

Research Area: Autonomous Products & Robots
Contact: Sophia Prix

This master thesis deals with the emerging technology of additive manufacturing (AM), commonly referred to as 3D printing. While AM has been highly adopted in specialized manufacturing industries, it is bound to enter the consumer market, with substantial implications for consumers, companies, and society at large. The master thesis involves conducting a cross-disciplinary literature review on AM as well as running an empirical study on consumers’ perception and adoption of AM, such as web scraping or an online/lab experiment in collaboration with an industry partner.

Research Areas: Autonomous Products & Robots; Customization & Personalization
Contact: Emanuel de Bellis

Main objective: Build an understanding for the customer journey with Swiss Robobarista Smyze. Starting from the WOW moment induced by the novel robot, this project illuminates the steps from awareness and interest generation through purchase intention, follow-through and repurchase. Special attention is paid to enablers and pain points across this journey.
Method: Qualitative; observation of the Smyze location SG Shopping Arena and interviews/focus groups with Smyze insiders, (new) customers and non-buyers.

Research Areas: Autonomous Products & Robots;
Contact: Jonas Görgen

Main objective: This project tests communication measures to increase purchases from the robobarista in situ, i.e., the studentwill develop theoretically-founded communication measures in consultation with Smyze, which are then tested at the location (e.g., positioning around efficiency vs. entertainment, warmth or competence, convenience or novelty).
Method: Quantitative; field experiment at the Smyze location in SG Shopping Arena. 

Research Areas: Autonomous Products & Robots;
Contact: Jonas Görgen

Main objective: Explore the reliability and validity of using virtual assistants like Google Assistant for data collection in marketing research, as compared to traditional methods. Evaluate the impact of interaction design on data quality and participant responsiveness.
Method: Sprengholz, P., & Betsch, C. (2021). Ok Google: Using virtual assistants for data collection in psychological and behavioral research. Behavior Research Methods, 1-13.

Research Areas: Voice Analytics
Contact: Hauke Roggenkamp

Main objective: While AI is a significant topic in technology and innovation, it doesn’t spread uniformly; some regions and cities adopt and apply AI much faster than others. This thesis aims to explore the spatial dimension of AI and identify the factors contributing to these spatial differences.

Research Area: Location Insights

Contact: Tobias Ebert

Objective: This bachelor/master thesis investigates how the vibe and culture of different regions affect entrepreneurship and innovation. It looks at how the psychological differences between regions, like local differences in personality and values, shape where start-ups emerge and thrive and where innovations are created and adopted.


Research Area: Location Insights

Contact: Tobias Ebert

Objective: TV shows are a multi-million-dollar industry that captivate audiences worldwide. This Bachelor/Master thesis seeks to examine how the personality of the main characters of popular TV-shows is perceived and how this personality shapes which characters we like and which we don’t.


Research Area: Personality Computing and Assessment

Contact: Michael Ohlinger

Objective: This Bachelor/Master thesis seeks to understand how people perceive the area they live in and how psychological characteristics shape when and to where we move.


Research Area: Geographical Psychology

Contact: Michael Ohlinger

Objective: Research suggests that financial resources are positively linked to well-being. However, the mechanisms through which socioeconomic status (SES) shapes everyday behaviors and contributes to well-being remain underexplored. This quantitative master thesis aims to investigate how digital footprints—captured through mobile sensing technologies—can reveal behavioral patterns associated with SES and provide insights into the pathways linking SES to well-being.


Research Area: Mobile Sensing & Behavioral Metrics

Contact: Timo Koch

Objective: This thesis examines how becoming a parent affects professional performance in the context of professional football athletes. To do so, detailed performance data from football players will be linked with child information and analyzed through longitudinal modeling. The study examines changes in performance before and after parenthood, offering insights into the interplay between personal life events and professional outcomes.


Research Area: Mobile Sensing & Behavioral Metrics

Objective: Previous research suggests that economic hardships may lead people to display higher levels of prejudice (i.e., to express more negative attitudes or stereotypes toward certain social groups). This thesis offers students the opportunity to (a) examine through which cognitive processes unemployment and prejudice are related, while (b) gaining hands-on experience with cognitive modeling models (i.e., approaches to study mental processes such as perception, memory, attention, and decision-making). Students may select topics from various domains of prejudice (including but not limited to race, gender, and sexual orientation).


Research Area: Mobile Sensing & Behavioral Metrics

Contact: Ruben Laukenmann

OPEN POSITIONS

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