PI: Josh Burk
William & Mary
Department of Psychological Sciences
1159 Integrated Science Center
Williamsburg, VA 23187jabur2@wm.edu
757-221-3882 (office)
757-221-3896 (FAX)
Current Academic and Administrative Positions:
2025-current Provost Liaison for Academic Innovation
2017-current Professor, Department of Psychological Sciences, College of William and Mary
2016-current Faculty Affiliate, Program in Neuroscience
Previous Academic and Administrative Positions:
2022-2025 Provost Faculty Fellow
2016-2022 Chair, Department of Psychological Sciences, College of William and Mary
2011-2015 Director, Neuroscience Program, College of William & Mary
2008-2017 Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, College of William & Mary
2002-2008 Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, College of William & Mary
Education:
May 1999, Ph.D. Experimental Psychology, University of New Hampshire
May 1999, M.S.T. College Teaching, University of New Hampshire
June 1996, M.A. Experimental Psychology, University of New Hampshire
June 1993, B. S. Psychology (Biological Emphasis), University of California, Davis
Research:
Previous Research Experience
2001-2002 Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Psychology, Ohio State University
1999-2001 Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Psychology, Ohio State University
1994-1999 Research/Teaching Assistant, Department of Psychology, University of New Hampshire
Research Interests
My general area of research interest is the neural basis of attention, learning, and memory. We have several current lines of research related to these topics:
- Role of the cholinergic system in attention: Considerable research has demonstrated that the basal forebrain cholinergic system is critical for normal attentional processing. Our work (McQuail & Burk, 2006) suggests that cholinergic muscarinic receptors, particularly the muscarinic M1 receptor, are important for mediating the effects of the cortical acetylcholine on attention (Burk & Robinson, 2010). Moreover, we have begun to elucidate the attentional demands that are necessary for demonstrating attentional deficits following loss of basal forebrain corticopetal cholinergic neurons (Burk, Lowder, Altemose, 2008). Our current work in this area involves assessing the role of acetylcholine when attentional demands are varied.
- Role of orexins in attention: In collaboration with Dr. Jim Fadel at the University of South Carolina Medical School, we are testing the role of the orexin system in attention. The orexinergic system originates within the hypothalamus and projects to multiple brain regions, including onto basal forebrain corticopetal cholinergic neurons. Our work has explored the role of the orexin projection to the basal forebrain in attentional processing (Fadel & Burk, 2010). We reported that blockade of orexin-1 receptors with SB-334867, either systemically or via direct infusions into the basal forebrain, disrupts attentional performance (Boschen, Fadel, Burk, 2009). Finally, we reported that orexin A could reverse attentional deficits following loss of basal forebrain cholinergic inputs to the medial prefrontal cortex (Zajo et al., 2016).
- Role of orexins in schizophrenia. Attentional deficits are associated with schizophrenia. We showed that a dual orexin receptor antagonist (DORA) could reverse attentional deficits in an animal model of schizophrenia induced by an NMDA receptor antagonist (Maness et al., 2023). We are interested in exploring whether DORAs can reverse attentional deficits in other models of schizophrenia and whether there are specific roles for orexin-1 and orexin-2 receptors in these effects.
- I also am a co-PI in an autism lab with Professor Cheryl Dickter. Please click here for more information about that lab.
Selected Recent Publications
Dickter, C. L. & Burk, J. A. (in press) Implicit and explicit attitudes towards autistic individuals: a review. Autism in Adulthood.
Bierce LF**, Dickter CL, Burk JA (in press) Simulated contact and attitudes toward autistic adults: effects of gender of the autistic adult and mediation by intergroup anxiety. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.
Dickter CL, Chang I*, Burk JA, Bravo AJ (2025) Autistic traits, emotion regulation, social anxiety, drinking to cope, and problematic alcohol use: A cross-cultural examination among young adults from seven countries. Substance Use and Misuse, 60, 766-774.
Allen AM*, Burk JA, Dickter CL (2025) The effect of labeling during simulated contact on attitudes toward autistic adults. Autism in Adulthood, 7, 93-99.
Maness EB**, Blumenthal SA**, Burk JA (2023) Dual orexin/hypocretin receptor antagonism attenuates NMDA receptor hypofunction-induced attention deficits in a rat model of schizophrenia. Behavioural Brain Research, 450, 114497.
Current Lab Students
Adelaide Griffey
Rose Hsieh
Vi Nguyen
Lillian Shee
Rayaan Siddiqui
Courses
Fall 2025 PSYC 445 Psychopharmacology