But things sometimes seem to get competitive among the judging panel - or is that just for show? "Oh look, of course there's competition," she says. "We have to stay true to what our heart and soul feel about performances and sometimes other people won't agree with that.
"When you're standing up for your opinion, it can get a little heated but at the end of the day we can brush ourselves off and say, 'Sorry about that'. You know, 'Whoops!'"
X Factor's biggest draw for Bassingthwaighte, though, is the same as for the audience.
"We all get to go on the same ride," she enthuses. "You see these contestants in their rawest form, and they put everything on the line when they walk out on that stage and they either make it to the next stage or it's the end of the road. The audience gets to feel exactly what we feel and see the growth of these contestants, from the auditions to the live shows.
"And then we all get to see the results at the end of it, you know; the contestants who are touring around and making multi-platinum albums."
Bassingthwaighte clearly gets a kick out of the opportunity to mentor the contestants. "I feel my role is to encourage, support and help grow talent," she says.
"I'll always be honest, but I'm not a big believer in tough love, I think you get better results by being nurturing. There are so many more elements to having a career than just being a good singer. There's a whole package, and I love the chance to help contestants work on making sure all those elements are up to standard."
During her own career as a singer and actress, Bassingthwaighte has been the grateful recipient of plenty of mentoring.
"You've got to always be listening and willing to learn and take on the advice from the people around you who've been in the industry longer.
"So when I performed in Grease the Musical with John Farnham, of course I was going to learn from that man, he's an absolute legend! And when I was on Neighbours I got to learn from people like Alan Fletcher and Jackie Woodburne [who play Karl and Susan Kennedy on the soap]."
After leaving school, Bassingthwaighte "did a million things" before getting her big acting break on All Saints in 1998, and later enjoyed singing success, first with band Rogue Traders and then as a solo artist: "I worked in a theme park, I did theatre restaurants, you name it, I've done it," she says, laughing.
So if X Factor had been around when she was getting started, would she have auditioned in the hope of skipping all that early grind and finding instant fame?
Bassingthwaighte sounds genuinely flummoxed by the question.
"You know what, I feel like the contestants are so brave, because they're putting themselves out there in front of millions of viewers.
"At the same time X Factor represents such a wonderful opportunity to be seen and heard and possibly have a career even if you don't win - I mean, look at Nathaniel Willemse. He finished sixth and he's going great guns.
"But I don't know whether I'd do it or not - I just feel so in awe of these contestants putting themselves out there the way they do."
Being involved in X Factor Australia has reignited Bassingthwaighte's interest in recording her own music again - having been on hiatus for a few years since having kids, she's back in the studio and hopes to "have something out for you guys real soon. It's very inspiring to be around all these amazing singers - you can't help but sing in the corridors around here, you know?"
One contestant Bassingthwaighte says New Zealanders should particularly keep an eye and ear out for is expat Kiwi Tee [Ofisa Toleafoa], who made a big impression last season but didn't make the final 12.
"He has a phenomenal voice and he has just come back that much stronger and with more confidence, which is awesome to see."
X Factor Australia premieres tonight, on TV3 at 7pm. It will screen 7pm Sundays and 7.30pm Thursdays.
