James Agathos

(MENAFN- The Conversation)

• PhD Candidate in Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne

Profile Articles

James Agathos is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Swinburne University of Technology, in the Centre for Mental Health and Brain Sciences. He completed his PhD at the University of Melbourne, in the Department of Psychiatry.

James's research work broadly aims to leverage advanced neuroimaging methods to expand our understanding of the mechanisms underpinning psychiatric disorder. During his PhD, he investigated the neural circuitry involved in cognitive restructuring, a key therapeutic approach used in first-line psychological therapies. His current research focuses on the impact of circadian and diurnal rhythms on reward processing in bipolar disorder.

Experience

• 2021–present PhD Candidate in Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne
• 2025–present Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Psychiatry, Swinburne University of Technology

Education

• 2026 University of Melbourne, PhD - Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences
• 2018 University of Melbourne, BA (Hons) - Psychology

Publications

• 2026 Cognitive restructuring and thalamocortical circuit alterations in posttraumatic stress disorder, Nature Mental Health
• 2026 A pilot randomized-controlled trial of telehealth delivered Transdiagnostic Intervention for Sleep Disorders and Circadian Rhythms (TranS-C) among ex-military and first responder/public safety personnel., Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy
• 2025 Informing functional neurological disorder treatment through posttraumatic stress disorder, Nature Reviews Psychology
• 2025 A scoping review of the efficacy of psychosocial interventions delivered by non-mental health workers following disaster and emergency events, Journal of Traumatic Stress
• 2025 Altered basal forebrain regulation of intrinsic brain networks in depressive and anxiety disorders, Nature Mental Health
• 2025 The Extended Process Model of Emotion Regulation in Managing Negative Affect in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Systematic Review, Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice
• 2025 Subcortical modulation of the extended salience network during negative emotional processing in mood and anxiety disorders, Molecular Psychiatry
• 2024 Reconceptualising Complex Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Predictive Processing Framework for Mechanisms and Intervention, Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews
• 2024 Altered task-related decoupling of the rostral anterior cingulate cortex in depression, Neuroimage: Clinical
• 2024 Neuroimaging evidence of disturbed self-appraisal in posttraumatic stress disorder: a systematic review, Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging
• 2023 Differential engagement of the posterior cingulate cortex during cognitive restructuring of negative self and social beliefs, Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience
• 2023 Improving mental health following multiple disasters in Australia: a randomized controlled trial of the Skills for Life Adjustment and Resilience (SOLAR) programme, European Journal of Psychotraumatology
• 2023 Posttraumatic Stress and Alexithymia: Symptom Associations, Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease
• 2023 Subcortical contributions to salience network functioning during negative emotional processing, NeuroImage
• 2023 Mental health across the early years in the military, Psychological Medicine
• 2022 Cross-lagged analyses of anger and PTSD symptoms among veterans in treatment, Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy
• 2021 A pilot study of the efficacy of Unified Protocol for Transdiagnostic Treatment of Emotional Disorders in treating posttraumatic psychopathology: A Randomized Controlled Trial, Journal of Traumatic Stress
• 2021 Prevalence and treatment implications of the ICD-11 complex PTSD diagnosis in Australian treatment-seeking current and ex-serving military members, European Journal of Psychotraumatology
• 2021 Alexithymia in posttraumatic stress disorder is not just emotion numbing: Systematic review of neural evidence and clinical implications, Journal of Affective Disorders
• 2020 Neural patterns during anticipation predict emotion regulation success for reappraisal, Cognitive, Affective and Behavioral Neuroscience
• 2019 Adjustment disorder: Current developments and future directions, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

Grants and Contracts

• 2025 Investigating Sex-Specific Stress-Response and Neurobiological Mechanisms in Functional Neurological Disorder Role: Co-Investigator Funding Source: Women's Health Research Catalyst Grants Program, Department of Health, Victoria State Government

Professional Memberships

• International Society of Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS)
• Biological Psychiatry Australia (BPA)
• Society of Biological Psychiatry (SOBP)
• Mental Health PhD Program (MHPP)
• Students of Neuropsychiatry Research (SONR)
• Students of Brain Research (SOBR)
• Graduate Researchers in Psychological Sciences (GRiPS)
• Australasian Society for Social and Affective Neuroscience (AS4SAN)

Research Areas

• Psychiatry (Incl. Psychotherapy) (110319)
• Neurosciences (1109)
• Biological Psychology (Neuropsychology, Psychopharmacology, Physiological Psychology) (170101)

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