Dr Jesse Bourke

Lecturer
PhD, Clin Psych; B Psych, Hons I
Email: jesse.bourke@nd.edu.au

  • Biography

    Jesse is a clinical psychologist, cognitive neuroscientist, and academic teaching and supervising in professional psychology. Clinically he works primarily with trauma, personality, and dissociative conditions and is currently conducting psychological research exploring how attachment, mentalizing, and epistemic trust are related to these conditions.

    As a neuroscientist he studies the physiology, anatomy, and connectivity of the brain in relation to the auditory system. As a clinician-researcher who works with minds in 'talk therapy' and studies brains in 'speech processing' he is most enthusiastic about ‘active inference’ as a unifying model of mind, brain, and behaviour for clinical psychological science and practice. Jesse is passionate about integrating science and practice.

    He has published in peer-reviewed journals in a number of areas of science, presented at national and international conferences, delivered trainings and seminars to a variety of mental health professionals, and contributed to health district treatment guidelines.

  • Research expertise and supervision

    Jesse is engaged in three primary fields of research and scholarship: (1) attachment, mentalisation, and epistemic trust, (2) the neuroscience of speech processing and brain asymmetries, and (3) active inference and its relevance to clinical psychology. He currently offers Honours supervision for the first of these projects at UNDA.

    • Attachment describes the innate tendency for humans (and other mammals) to seek security and safety through relationships. Mentalising refers to the ability to make sense of human behaviour as a consequence of mental-states (e.g., thoughts, feelings, desires, intentions etc.). Epistemic trust refers to the degree to which one’s mind is open and changeable in response to the minds of others (i.e., to view others’ perspectives as reliable and learn from them). Together, they simply address how well we mind our mind and the minds of others. Mentalising and epistemic trust are crucial factors in severe mental health conditions and the focus of evidence-based treatment (e.g., mentalisation-based treatment; MBT, for personality and trauma disorders). However, they are also relevant for anyone with a mind and a life to live. For example, the attachment style and levels of mentalising and epistemic trust of psychotherapists, teachers, and parents seem to relate their effectiveness in their caring roles as well as their own well-being. Jesse's research in this area is focused to explore how various psychological factors relate to attachment, mentalizing, and epistemic trust.
    • Speech is the primary way in which most people communicate. When functional, speech processing seems quite a simple process of listening, hearing, and understanding. Dysfunctions of speech and speech-related processes however can significantly affect the well-being of people and their ability to connect and interact socially. Furthermore, speech is the fundamental element of psychotherapy ('talk therapy'), the first-line treatment for the majority of mental health problems. How the brain transforms noises into meaningful sounds remains much of a mystery. However, a common finding is that the left and right halves of the brain seem to play different roles in this. Jesse's research uses magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and electroencephalography (EEG) to measure the shape, size and connections, as well as activity of the brain, in speech-processing. In particular this has a focus of how differences of the way that brains are organised relate to better or worse abilities to make meaning from noise in speech-processing.
    • Active inference is a 'process theory' derived from 'the free energy principle', a principle that can be used to described the existence of any and every-thing. Uniquely, active inference offers a 'physics of the mind' and allows psychology to be understood in the same framework as physics, neuroscience, information theory, machine learning, and other disciplines. This means that insights of "how things work" in these other areas can then be used to understand how our minds, brains, and behaviour work, which allows for improvements in how psychological problems (i.e., when they aren't working too well; 'mental illness') can be better understood and worked with in clinical psychology. Jesse is currently working to make active inference more available to clinical psychologists and mental health service-users to improve the ways that we work with (act) and make sense of (infer) psychological problems in this area.

    Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Psychology supervision:

    Jesse is a supervisor in the Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Psychology program, with his focus areas as follows:

    Attachment, Emotions & Personality:

    • Attachment
    • Mentalisation
    • Stress
    • Alexithymia
    • Narcissism
    • Dissociation
    • Life Satisfaction
    • Emotion Regulation

    If you are interested in studying Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Psychology and would like Jesse as your supervisor, please contact Dr Raquel Peel at raquel.peel@nd.edu.au. Alternatively, you can explore other supervisors available for this program.

  • Teaching areas

    • Psychological interventions
    • Clinical psychology
    • Professional psychology practice

  • Journal Articles and Proceedings:

    • Bourke, J. D, Cooper, G., Forstmann, B. I., & Todd, J. (2024). Morphometrical Asymmetries and Tractography of Speech-Relevant Cortex in Relation to Language Lateralisation and Rapid Temporal Processing. PLoS One [Manuscript Under Review].
    • Bourke, J. D. (2024). Active Inference Under the Free Energy Principle: A Model Paradigm for Clinical Psychology as a Scientist-Practitioner Discipline. Manuscript in Development.
    • Todd, J. & Bourke, J. D. (2024). Structure-function relationships are noise dependent for rapid temporal processing of non-speech sounds. Manuscript in Development.
    • Bourke, J. D., (2022). Role Models, Internal Working Models, and Generative Models: (Inter)Active Inference as a Dynamical Systems and Psychobiological Lens of Attachment Trauma and Treatment. Invited presentation for Australian & New Zealand Association of Psychotherapy (ANZAP) 31st Annual Conference. Sydney, Australia.
    • Bourke, J. D., & Todd, J. (2021). Acoustics versus linguistics? Context is Part and Parcel to lateralized processing of the parts and parcels of speech. Laterality, 1-41. doi:10.1080/1357650X.2021.1898415
    • Bourke, J. D. (2019). Hemispheric Asymmetry and Functional Lateralisation in Speech-Related Processes: Behavioural, Psychophysiological, and Structural Factors. Thesis available at https://nova.newcastle.edu.au
    • Bourke, J. D., (2019). Listening To, Between, and From Within the Lines we Speak: Brain Asymmetries Underliying Linear and Non-Linear Speech in Therapy. Australian & New Zealand Association of Psychotherapy (ANZAP) 30th Annual Conference. Sydney, Australia.
    • Bourke, J. D., Cooper, G., Forstmann B. U., Michie, P., Todd, J., Schall, U. (2018). Rapid Temporal Processing: How Behavioural and Psychophysiological Measures Relate with Asymmetrical Neuroanatomy. Poster presented at Society for Psychophysiological Research (SPR) 58th Annual Meeting: Quebec, Canada.
    • Bourke, J. D., Plant, C., & Wooldridge, S. (2018). Interpersonal psychotherapy with expressive art for depression in a psycho-oncology context. Clinical Case Studies, 17(6), 453–468.
    • Bourke, J. D., Todd, J., Schall, U., Cooper, G., Michie, P., Forstmann B. U., Rasser P. (2017). Simple Speech Asymmetries? Not Even: Leftward Lateralisation in Psycholinguistics, Psychoacoustics, and Neuroanatomy. Poster presented at Australasian Neuroscience Society (ANS) 37th Annual Meeting: Sydney, Australia.
    • Bourke, J. D., Todd, J., Schall, U., Michie, P. (2016). Asymmetries and Rapid Temporal Processing Ability: How do Behaviour, Psychophysiology, and Neuroanatomy Relate? Talk presented at Australaian Cognitive Neuroscience Society (ACNS) 7th Annual Meeting: Newcastle, Australia.
    • Bosshard, S. S., Bourke, J. D., Kunaharan, S., Koller, M., Walla, P., & Heinonen, J. (2016). Established
      liked versus disliked brands: Brain activity, implicit associations and explicit responses. Cogent Psychology, 3(1). doi:10.1080/23311908.2016.1176691
    • Bourke, J. D., Todd, J., Schall, U. (2015). Determinants of Rapid Temporal Processing Ability: Behaviour, Psychophysiology, and Neuroanatomy. Talk presented at Australasian Society for Psychophysiology (ASP) 25th Annual Meeting: Sydney, Australia.
    • Bourke, J. D., Todd, J., Schall, U. (2015). Behaviour, Psychophysiology, and Neuroanatomy in Rapid Temporal Processing Ability. Talk presented at Centre for Brain and Mental Health Research (CBMHR) Post-graduate & Post-doctoral Conference: Newcastle, Australia.
    • Gilligan, C., Kypri, K., & Bourke, J. D. (2014). Social networking versus facebook advertising to recruit survey respondents: A Quasi-experimental study. JMIR Research Protocols, 3(3).
    • Gilligan, C., Thompson, K., Bourke, J. D., Kypri, K., & Stockwell, T. (2014). "Everybody else is doing it"-norm perceptions among parents of adolescents. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 75, 908-918.
    • Bourke, J. D. (2013). I Think Therefore I Like?  Reassessing Implicit and Explicit Brand Attitudes and how they are Conditioned. University of Newcastle Unpublished Manuscript.

  • Professional affiliations

    Australian Clinical Psychology Association (ACPA)

  • Awards

    • 2018 Centre for Brain and Mental Health Research Travel Scholarship
    • UoN Science Faculty Higher Degree Research Conference Scholarship
    • 2017 Australian Psychological Society POPIG Psychoanalytic Essay Prize
    • UoN Science Faculty High Commendation for Collaboration Excellence
    • Centre for Brain and Mental Health Research Travel Scholarship
    • 2016 UoN Ros Gribble Prize for Excellence in Clinical Psychology
    • 2015 Australasian Society for Psychophysiology 25th Conference Best Research Presentation Award
    • 2014 Australian Postgraduate Award Research Scholarship
    • 2013 UoN Science & IT Faculty Medal for Academic Excellence
    • UoN Provisional Postgraduate Research Scholarship
    • UoN Vice Chancellor’s Honours Scholarship for Academic Excellence
    • 2012  Faculty  of Science & IT Commendation List for Academic Excellence
    • Faculty of Science & IT Summer Research Scholarship
    • 2011  Faculty of Science & IT Commendation List for Academic Excellence

  • Others

    Bourke, J. D., (2024). Applications of Active Inference to Formulation and Self-Reflective Practice [in Clinical Psychology]. Australian Psychological Society. Webinar.
    Bourke, J. D., (2021). Understanding and supporting trauma. In-service training for Toronto Private Hospital mental health staff.
    Bourke, J. D., (2018). The Brain Doing, Being, & Playing in Therapy: A Neuropsychoanalytic Approach to Winnicott. Invited talk for the Eastlakes Mental Health Network Professionals Group.
    Bourke, J. D., (2018). On the Value of Play in Therapy for Adults: Perspectives from Neuroscience, Buddhist Psychology, and Winnicottian Psychoanalysis. Invited talk for the Australian Psychological Soceity Psychoanalytic Group Annual Meeting.