Senior Impact Researcher

About CDI

The Constructive Dialogue Institute (CDI) is a non-partisan, non-profit dedicated to equipping the next generation of Americans with the skills to communicate and collaborate across lines of difference. We work with U.S. colleges and universities by providing co-curricular programming for students, professional development for faculty and staff, and strategic guidance to leadership. Our goal is to foster constructive dialogue at every level of the institution and to create the conditions for lasting organizational change. CDI was co-founded by psychologist Jonathan Haidt, the bestselling author of The Righteous Mind and The Anxious Generation.
About the Role

CDI is looking for a Senior Impact Researcher to own our evaluation agenda end-to-end - designing and executing impact and efficacy studies, building the measurement systems and analytical workflows behind them, and translating findings into insight that reaches academic, practitioner, funder, and public audiences.

This is a role for someone who cares as much about how research lands as how it's designed - combining deep methodological expertise with a genuine commitment to public-facing communication. You'll work at the intersection of rigorous social science and real-world organizational impact, contributing to both CDI's mission and the broader field of constructive dialogue.

This role reports to the Senior Director of Research and Evaluation and works in close collaboration with three key peers on the Research and Evaluation team: the Research Scientist, who brings subject-matter expertise in moral psychology, dialogue, and bridge-building; the Senior Research Associate, who owns research operations, survey administration, and UX research; and the Senior Data Scientist, who owns the data infrastructure and reporting systems that evaluation workflows depend on.
Responsibilities

Program Evaluation & Impact Research (50%)

• Own CDI's impact and efficacy research portfolio, including pre-post evaluations, quasi-experimental studies, and randomized controlled trials conducted in partnership with university collaborators.
• Lead all phases of evaluation work: research design, measurement development, data collection planning, analysis, interpretation, and reporting.
• Develop, revise, test, and validate assessment measures, including self-report surveys, behavioral indicators, and emerging measurement approaches.
• Build and maintain reproducible analytical workflows and documentation standards that support rigorous, auditable research.

External Communication & Field Contribution (30%)

• Through various written and oral formats, communicate research findings to diverse external audiences, including university partners, funders, academic and practitioner communities, and the general public.
• Represent CDI's research with accuracy, clarity, and appropriate nuance, in a manner consistent with CDI's values and nonpartisan commitments.
• Contribute to CDI's external credibility and thought leadership in the fields of evaluation, dialogue education, and bridge-building.
• Collaborate with Growth, Education, and Product teams to translate findings into program improvements and partner-facing materials.

Research Systems & Collaboration (20%)

• Partner with the Senior Data Scientist to ensure measurement and data collection workflows are well-integrated into reporting infrastructure and stakeholder-facing outputs.
• Collaborate with the Senior Research Associate on qualitative data collection, coding, and synthesis, and on the operational systems that support study execution.
• Build evaluation fluency across the team by helping colleagues develop shared language around measurement concepts, study findings, and their implications.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with Product, Education, and Growth teams to align evaluation priorities with organizational needs.

About You

Required

• 5+ years of experience leading applied social science research, including program evaluation or impact studies outside of purely academic settings.
• Strong command of quantitative research design and advanced statistical methods (e.g., multilevel modeling, mediation/moderation, longitudinal analysis, experimental and quasi-experimental designs).
• Experience designing and executing evaluations of interventions or programs, including in field (non-lab) settings.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including demonstrated ability to write for non-academic audiences.
• Experience presenting or publishing research findings for practitioner, funder, or public audiences.

Preferred

• Experience with mixed-methods research, including qualitative data collection and synthesis.
• PhD in psychology, education, or a related quantitative social science field
• Familiarity with higher education, civic learning, or dialogue/bridge-building contexts.
• Experience programming in R; proficiency with reproducible research workflows.
• Knowledge of implementation science or improvement science frameworks.
• Experience collaborating with or advising product or education teams on measurement and evaluation.

Benefits

• Compensation - $130,000-$140,000
• A Mission-Driven Culture - we practice what we preach, so our work culture is characterized by intellectual humility, continuous improvement, and open-mindedness
• Remote-First - CDI was founded as a remote-first organization, and we work hard to maintain a strong team culture across vast distances
• Unlimited PTO - as well as 13 company holidays
• Remote Work Support - up to $500 reimbursed for home office equipment (like desks, chairs, or webcams) and up to $50/month reimbursed for home internet or cell phone expenses
• Other Benefits - employer-supported health, vision and dental plans, subsidized parental leave, 3% 401k match, short- and long-term disability insurance, life and AD&D insurance, $1,000 annual professional development budget

Role Specs

• Reports to : Senior Director of Research and Evaluation
• Schedule: Full-time, flexible within U.S. time zones
• Target start date: ASAP
• Location: Remote, must be based in the U.S.
• Travel: twice a year for CDI's in-person gatherings, and approximately once a quarter to represent CDI at conferences or funder events.