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Dr Philip Jean-Richard Dit Bressel

Dr Philip Jean-Richard Dit Bressel

Lecturer

2015 PhD, °IJʹ Sydney

Science
School of Psychology

I am a behavioural neuroscientist and experimental psychologist at °IJʹ School of Psychology. I recevied my PhD from °IJʹ School of Psychology in 2015.

My research seeks to understand the psychology and neurobiology of motivated learning, decision-making, and behaviour. I am particularly interested in how we learn and make decisions about actions with negative consequences ("punishment learning").
E-mail
p.jean-richardditbressel@unsw.edu.au
Location
Room 706, Mathews Building School of Psychology °IJʹ Sydney
  • Journal articles | 2025
    Keevers LJ; Jean-Richard-Dit-Bressel P, 2025, 'Obtaining artifact-corrected signals in fiber photometry via isosbestic signals, robust regression, and dF/F calculations.', Neurophotonics, 12, pp. 025003,
    Journal articles | 2024
    Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Gaetani K; Zeng L; Weidemann G; McNally GP, 2024, 'Translational Research in Punishment Learning', Behavioral Neuroscience, 138, pp. 143 - 151,
    Journal articles | 2024
    Mcnally GP; Jean-Richard-Dit-Bressel P, 2024, 'A Cognitive Pathway to Persistent, Maladaptive Choice', European Addiction Research, 30, pp. 233 - 242,
    Journal articles | 2024
    Rafiei N; Mitchell CS; Tedesco CR; Chen J; Choi EA; Roughley S; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Kumar NN; McNally GP; Herzog H; Begg DP, 2024, 'Chemogenetic activation ofarcuate nucleus NPY and NPY/AgRP neurons increases feeding behaviour in mice', Neuropeptides, 107,
    Journal articles | 2023
    Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Lee JC; Liew SX; Weidemann G; Lovibond PF; McNally GP, 2023, 'A cognitive pathway to punishment insensitivity', Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 120, pp. e2221634120,
    Journal articles | 2023
    Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; McNally GP, 2023, 'Reply to Jarvis and Chong: Understanding punishment insensitivity phenotypes using computational modelling', Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 120,
    Journal articles | 2023
    McNally GP; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Millan EZ; Lawrence AJ, 2023, 'Pathways to the persistence of drug use despite its adverse consequences', Molecular Psychiatry, 28, pp. 2228 - 2237,
    Journal articles | 2022
    Choi EA; Husić M; Millan EZ; Gilchrist S; Power JM; dit Bressel PJR; McNally GP; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P, 2022, 'A Corticothalamic Circuit Trades off Speed for Safety during Decision-Making under Motivational Conflict', Journal of Neuroscience, 42, pp. 3473 - 3483,
    Journal articles | 2022
    Ghareh H; Alonso-Lozares I; Schetters D; Herman RJ; Heistek TS; Van Mourik Y; Jean-Richard-dit-bressel P; Zernig G; Mansvelder HD; De Vries TJ; Marchant NJ, 2022, 'Role of anterior insula cortex in context-induced relapse of nicotine-seeking', Elife, 11, pp. e75609,
    Journal articles | 2022
    Jean Richard dit Bressel P; McNally GP, 2022, 'Punishment and compulsion: more than meets the eye', Neuropsychopharmacology, 47, pp. 425 - 426,
    Journal articles | 2022
    Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Tran J; Didachos A; McNally GP, 2022, 'Instrumental aversion coding in the basolateral amygdala and its reversion by a benzodiazepine', Neuropsychopharmacology, 47, pp. 1199 - 1209,
    Journal articles | 2021
    Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Lee J; Liew SX; Weidemann G; Lovibond P; McNally G, 2021, 'Punishment insensitivity in humans is due to failures in instrumental contingency learning', ,
    Journal articles | 2021
    Jean-Richard-dit-bressel P; Lee JC; Liew SX; Weidemann G; Lovibond PF; McNally GP, 2021, 'Punishment insensitivity in humans is due to failures in instrumental contingency learning', Elife, 10, pp. e69594,
    Journal articles | 2021
    Peng CY; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Gilchrist S; Power JM; McNally GP, 2021, 'Phasic inhibition of dopamine neurons is an instrumental punisher.', Behavioral Neuroscience, 135, pp. 415 - 425,
    Journal articles | 2020
    Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Clifford CWG; McNally GP, 2020, 'Analyzing Event-Related Transients: Confidence Intervals, Permutation Tests, and Consecutive Thresholds', Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience, 13, pp. 14,
    Journal articles | 2020
    Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Ma C; Bradfield L; Killcross S; McNally G, 2020, 'Punishment insensitivity emerges from impaired contingency detection, not aversion insensitivity or reward dominance', eLife, 8, pp. 808873,
    Journal articles | 2020
    Liu Y; Jean-Richard-Dit-Bressel P; Yau JOY; Willing A; Prasad AA; Power JM; Killcross S; Clifford CWG; McNally GP, 2020, 'The mesolimbic dopamine activity signatures of relapse to alcohol-seeking', Journal of Neuroscience, 40, pp. 6409 - 6427,
    Journal articles | 2020
    Ma C; Jean-Richard-Dit-Bressel P; Roughley S; Vissel B; Balleine BW; Killcross S; Bradfield LA, 2020, 'Medial Orbitofrontal Cortex Regulates Instrumental Conditioned Punishment, but not Pavlovian Conditioned Fear.', Cereb Cortex Commun, 1, pp. tgaa039,
    Journal articles | 2020
    Ma C; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Roughley S; Vissel B; Balleine B; Killcross S; Bradfield L, 2020, 'Medial Orbitofrontal Cortex Regulates Instrumental Conditioned Punishment, but not Pavlovian Conditioned Fear', ,
    Journal articles | 2019
    Choi EA; Jean-Richard-Dit-Bressel P; Clifford C; Mcnally G, 2019, 'Paraventricular thalamus controls behavior during motivational conflict', IBRO Reports, 6, pp. S68 - S68,
    Journal articles | 2019
    Choi EA; Jean-Richard-Dit-Bressel P; Clifford CWG; McNally GP, 2019, 'Paraventricular thalamus controls behavior during motivational conflict', Journal of Neuroscience, 39, pp. 4945 - 4958,
    Journal articles | 2019
    Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Ma C; Bradfield LA; Killcross S; McNally GP, 2019, 'Punishment insensitivity emerges from impaired contingency detection, not aversion insensitivity or reward dominance', Elife, 8, pp. e52765,
    Journal articles | 2019
    Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; McNally GP, 2019, 'Visualizing Infralimbic Control over Incubation of Cocaine Craving', Neuron, 103, pp. 1 - 3,
    Journal articles | 2018
    Gibson GD; Prasad AA; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Yau JOY; Millan EZ; Liu Y; Campbell EJ; Lim J; Marchant NJ; Power JM; Killcross S; Lawrence AJ; McNally GP, 2018, 'Distinct Accumbens Shell Output Pathways Promote versus Prevent Relapse to Alcohol Seeking', Neuron, 98, pp. 512 - 520.e6,
    Journal articles | 2018
    Jean-Richard-Dit-Bressel P; Killcross S; McNally GP, 2018, 'Behavioral and neurobiological mechanisms of punishment: Implications for psychiatric disorders', Neuropsychopharmacology, 43, pp. 1639 - 1650,
    Journal articles | 2018
    Sengupta A; Yau JOY; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Liu Y; Millan EZ; Power JM; McNally GP, 2018, 'Basolateral amygdala neurons maintain aversive emotional salience', Journal of Neuroscience, 38, pp. 3001 - 3012,
    Journal articles | 2017
    Sengupta A; Yau JOY; Bressel PJ-RD; Liu Y; Zayra Millan E; Power J; McNally G, 2017, 'Basolateral amygdala glutamatergic neurons maintain aversive emotional salience', ,
    Journal articles | 2016
    Jean-Richard-Dit-Bressel P; McNally GP, 2016, 'Lateral, not medial, prefrontal cortex contributes to punishment and aversive instrumental learning', Learning and Memory, 23, pp. 607 - 617,
    Journal articles | 2015
    Jean-Richard-Dit-Bressel P; McNally GP, 2015, 'The role of the basolateral amygdala in punishment', Learning and Memory, 22, pp. 128 - 137,
    Journal articles | 2014
    Bressel PJRD; McNally GP; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P, 2014, 'The role of the lateral habenula in punishment', Plos One, 9, pp. e111699,
  • Preprints | 2025
    Gaetani K; McNally G; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P, 2025, Early contingency information enhances human punishment sensitivity when punishment is frequent but not rare,
    Preprints | 2025
    Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Zeng L; Park H; McNally G, 2025, Causal inference deficits and integration failure drive stable variation in human punishment sensitivity,
    Preprints | 2025
    Wise ET; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Yau JO-Y; McNally GP; Power JM, 2025, Instrumental Punishment Learning Enhances the Intrinsic Excitability of Basolateral Amygdala Neurons,
    Preprints | 2024
    Keevers L; McNally G; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P, 2024, Obtaining artifact-corrected signals in fiber photometry: Isosbestic signals, robust regression and dF/F calculations,
    Preprints | 2023
    Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Gaetani K; Zeng LZ; Weidemann G; McNally G, 2023, Translational research in punishment learning,
    Preprints | 2023
    Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Lee J; Liew SX; Weidemann G; Lovibond P; McNally G, 2023, A cognitive pathway to punishment insensitivity,
    Preprints | 2023
    Keevers LJ; McNally GP; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P, 2023, Obtaining artifact-corrected signals in fiber photometry: Isosbestic signals, robust regression and dF/F calculations,
    Preprints | 2023
    McNally G; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P, 2023, A cognitive pathway to persistent, maladaptive choice,
    Preprints | 2021
    Choi E; Husić M; Millan Z; Jean Richard dit Bressel P; McNally G, 2021, A corticothalamic circuit trades off speed for safety during decision-making under motivational conflict,
    Preprints | 2021
    Ghareh H; Alonso-Lozares I; Schetters D; Herman R; Heistek T; van Mourik Y; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Zernig G; Mansvelder H; de Vries T; Marchant N, 2021, Role of anterior insula cortex in context-induced relapse of nicotine-seeking,
    Preprints | 2021
    Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Tran J; Didachos A; McNally G, 2021, Instrumental aversion coding in the basolateral amygdala and its reversion by a benzodiazepine,
    Preprints | 2020
    Liu Y; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Yau JO-Y; Willing A; Prasad A; Power J; Killcross S; Clifford CWG; McNally G, 2020, The mesolimbic dopamine signatures of relapse to alcohol-seeking,
    Preprints | 2020
    Peng CY; Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P; Gilchrist S; Power J; McNally G, 2020, Phasic inhibition of dopamine neurons is an instrumental punisher,

Australian Research Council

Discovery Project (2022-2024). “Brain circuits for parsing aversion” [Lead investigator, AU$340,023]

2025 D. G. Marquis Behavioral Neuroscience Award, American Psychological Association

2024 Best Paper Award - General Category, Biological Psychiatry Australia

2023 Millennium Science Fellowship:"Identifying transcriptomic signatures of adaptive versus maladaptive learning about adverse action consequences”

2023 Translation Launchpad Program, °IJʹ Sydney

2022 Early Career Achievement Award, International Behavioral Neuroscience Society

2022 D. G. Marquis Behavioral Neuroscience Award, American Psychological Association

2015 The Paxinos Neuroscience Prize, °IJʹ Sydney

2011 Istvan Tork Neuroscience Prize, °IJʹ Sydney

Editorial Board:Journal of Neuroscience; Neurobiology of Learning and Memory

Faculty, (ACAN), Australasian Neuroscience Society

Guest Editor, Neurobiology of Learning and Memory

Media

(2024).Nesh Nikolic,Better Thinking Podcast

(2023). ABC | Future Tense

(2023). Antony Funnell, ABC | Future Tense

Research sheds new light on self-destructive behaviour(2023). Lachlan Gilbert, °IJʹ Newsroom

(2021).Education Today

Why punishment may work on some, but not all people(2021).Lachlan Gilbert, °IJʹ Newsroom

(2020).TDT Talks | Fiber Photometry Series,Tucker-DavisTechnologies

My Research Supervision

PhD:

Bixuan Lin

Luke Keevers

Min Lou