Mary Johnson O'Connor, Ph.D.

Mailing Address:
760 Westwood Plaza, 68-265A Semel Institute
Los Angeles, CA 90095

Affiliations
Affiliations
Director, UCLA Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Clinic
Professor, Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences
Program Director, ABC Child Partial Outpatient Program
Training Director, Tarjan Center for Developmental Disabilities
Biography

Dr. O'Connor is a child clinical psychologist who has served on the UCLA School of Medicine faculty since joining the Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences in 1981. Dr. O'Connor earned her B.A. in psychology at Wake Forest University and Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology at UCLA. Dr. O'Connor is actively involved in graduate and medical education. She is a recipient of the Deparatment of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences Outstanding Housestaff Teaching Award. Dr. O'Connor has served on several national panels as an expert in prenatal alcohol exposure. She currently is on the National Task Force for Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Effects, an appointed body that reports directly to Congress.

Publications

A selected list of publications:

le Roux Ingrid M, Tomlinson Mark, Harwood Jessica M, O'Connor Mary J, Worthman Carol M, Mbewu Nokwanele, Stewart Jacqueline, Hartley Mary, Swendeman Dallas, Comulada W Scott, Weiss Robert E, Rotheram-Borus Mary Jane   Outcomes of home visits for pregnant mothers and their infants: a cluster randomized controlled trial AIDS (London, England), 2013; 27(9): 1461-71.
Tomlinson Mark, O'Connor Mary J, le Roux Ingrid M, Stewart Jacqueline, Mbewu Nokwanele, Harwood Jessica, Rotheram-Borus Mary Jane   Multiple Risk Factors During Pregnancy in South Africa: The Need for a Horizontal Approach to Perinatal Care Prevention science : the official journal of the Society for Prevention Research, 2013; 280(1759): .
Quattlebaum Justin L, O'Connor Mary J   [Formula: see text]Higher functioning children with prenatal alcohol exposure: is there a specific neurocognitive profile? Child neuropsychology : a journal on normal and abnormal development in childhood and adolescence, 2013; 19(6): 561-78.
Colby John B, Smith Lynne, O'Connor Mary J, Bookheimer Susan Y, Van Horn John D, Sowell Elizabeth R   White matter microstructural alterations in children with prenatal methamphetamine/polydrug exposure Psychiatry research, 2012; 204(2-3): 140-8.
Yang Yaling, Roussotte Florence, Kan Eric, Sulik Kathleen K, Mattson Sarah N, Riley Edward P, Jones Kenneth L, Adnams Colleen M, May Philip A, O'Connor Mary J, Narr Katherine L, Sowell Elizabeth R   Abnormal cortical thickness alterations in fetal alcohol spectrum disorders and their relationships with facial dysmorphology Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991), 2012; 22(5): 1170-9.
Yang Yaling, Phillips Owen R, Kan Eric, Sulik Kathleen K, Mattson Sarah N, Riley Edward P, Jones Kenneth L, Adnams Colleen M, May Philip A, O'Connor Mary J, Narr Katherine L, Sowell Elizabeth R   Callosal thickness reductions relate to facial dysmorphology in fetal alcohol spectrum disorders Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research, 2012; 36(5): 798-806.
Roussotte Florence F, Sulik Kathleen K, Mattson Sarah N, Riley Edward P, Jones Kenneth L, Adnams Colleen M, May Philip A, O'Connor Mary J, Narr Katherine L, Sowell Elizabeth R   Regional brain volume reductions relate to facial dysmorphology and neurocognitive function in fetal alcohol spectrum disorders Human brain mapping, 2012; 33(4): 920-37.
Roussotte Florence F, Rudie Jeffrey D, Smith Lynne, O'Connor Mary J, Bookheimer Susan Y, Narr Katherine L, Sowell Elizabeth R   Frontostriatal Connectivity in Children during Working Memory and the Effects of Prenatal Methamphetamine, Alcohol, and Polydrug Exposure Developmental neuroscience, 2012; 33(4): .
O'Connor Mary J, Laugeson Elizabeth A, Mogil Catherine, Lowe Evy, Welch-Torres Kathleen, Keil Vivien, Paley Blair   Translation of an evidence-based social skills intervention for children with prenatal alcohol exposure in a community mental health setting Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research, 2012; 36(1): 141-52.
Rotheram-Borus Mary Jane, le Roux Ingrid M, Tomlinson Mark, Mbewu Nokwanele, Comulada W Scott, le Roux Karl, Stewart Jacqueline, O'Connor Mary J, Hartley Mary, Desmond Kate, Greco Erin, Worthman Carol M, Idemundia Faith, Swendeman Dallas   Philani Plus (+): a Mentor Mother community health worker home visiting program to improve maternal and infants' outcomes Prevention science : the official journal of the Society for Prevention Research, 2011; 12(4): 372-88.
Eyal Roy, O'Connor Mary J   Psychiatry trainees' training and experience in fetal alcohol spectrum disorders Academic psychiatry : the journal of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training and the Association for Academic Psychiatry, 2011; 35(4): 238-40.
Roussotte Florence F, Bramen Jennifer E, Nunez S Christopher, Quandt Lorna C, Smith Lynne, O'Connor Mary J, Bookheimer Susan Y, Sowell Elizabeth R   Abnormal brain activation during working memory in children with prenatal exposure to drugs of abuse: the effects of methamphetamine, alcohol, and polydrug exposure NeuroImage, 2011; 54(4): 3067-75.
Paley Blair, O'Connor Mary J   Behavioral interventions for children and adolescents with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders Alcohol research & health : the journal of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, 2011; 34(1): 64-75.
O'Connor Mary J, Tomlinson Mark, Leroux Ingrid M, Stewart Jacqueline, Greco Erin, Rotheram-Borus Mary Jane   Predictors of alcohol use prior to pregnancy recognition among township women in Cape Town, South Africa Social science & medicine (1982), 2011; 72(1): 83-90.
Sowell Elizabeth R, Leow Alex D, Bookheimer Susan Y, Smith Lynne M, O'Connor Mary J, Kan Eric, Rosso Carly, Houston Suzanne, Dinov Ivo D, Thompson Paul M   Differentiating prenatal exposure to methamphetamine and alcohol versus alcohol and not methamphetamine using tensor-based brain morphometry and discriminant analysis The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience, 2010; 30(11): 3876-85.
Keil Vivien, Paley Blair, Frankel Fred, O'Connor Mary J   Impact of a social skills intervention on the hostile attributions of children with prenatal alcohol exposure Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research, 2010; 34(2): 231-41.
O'Hare Elizabeth D, Lu Lisa H, Houston Suzanne M, Bookheimer Susan Y, Mattson Sarah N, O'Connor Mary J, Sowell Elizabeth R   Altered frontal-parietal functioning during verbal working memory in children and adolescents with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure Human brain mapping, 2009; 30(10): 3200-8.
Lu Lisa H, Johnson Arianne, O'Hare Elizabeth D, Bookheimer Susan Y, Smith Lynne M, O'Connor Mary J, Sowell Elizabeth R   Effects of prenatal methamphetamine exposure on verbal memory revealed with functional magnetic resonance imaging Journal of developmental and behavioral pediatrics : JDBP, 2009; 30(3): 185-92.
Schonfeld Amy M, Paley Blair, Frankel Fred, O'Connor Mary J   Behavioral regulation as a predictor of response to Children's Friendship Training in children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders The Clinical neuropsychologist, 2009; 23(3): 428-45.
Paley Blair, O'Connor Mary J, Baillie Susan J, Guiton Gretchen, Stuber Margaret L   Integrating case topics in medical school curriculum to enhance multiple skill learning: using fetal alcohol spectrum disorders as an exemplary case Academic psychiatry : the journal of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training and the Association for Academic Psychiatry, 2009; 33(2): 143-8.
Tsai James, Floyd R Louise, O'Connor Mary J, Velasquez Mary M   Alcohol use and serious psychological distress among women of childbearing age Addictive behaviors, 2009; 34(2): 146-53.
Paley Blair, O'Connor Mary J   Intervention for individuals with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders: treatment approaches and case management Developmental disabilities research reviews, 2009; 15(3): 258-67.
Floyd R Louise, Weber Mary Kate, Denny Clark, O'Connor Mary J   Prevention of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders Developmental disabilities research reviews, 2009; 15(3): 193-9.
O'Connor Mary J, Paley Blair   Psychiatric conditions associated with prenatal alcohol exposure Developmental disabilities research reviews, 2009; 15(3): 225-34.
Sowell Elizabeth R, Johnson Arianne, Kan Eric, Lu Lisa H, Van Horn John Darrell, Toga Arthur W, O'Connor Mary J, Bookheimer Susan Y   Mapping white matter integrity and neurobehavioral correlates in children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience, 2008; 28(6): 1313-9.
Sowell Elizabeth R, Lu Lisa H, O'Hare Elizabeth D, McCourt Sarah T, Mattson Sarah N, O'Connor Mary J, Bookheimer Susan Y   Functional magnetic resonance imaging of verbal learning in children with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure Neuroreport, 2007; 18(7): 635-9.
O'Connor Mary J, Whaley Shannon E   Brief intervention for alcohol use by pregnant women American journal of public health, 2007; 97(2): 252-8.
Schonfeld Amy M, Paley Blair, Frankel Fred, O'Connor Mary J   Executive functioning predicts social skills following prenatal alcohol exposure Child neuropsychology : a journal on normal and abnormal development in childhood and adolescence, 2006; 12(6): 439-52.
Frankel Fred, Paley Blair, Marquardt Renee, O'Connor Mary   Stimulants, neuroleptics, and children's friendship training for children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders Journal of child and adolescent psychopharmacology, 2006; 16(6): 777-89.
Paley Blair, O'connor Mary J, Frankel Fred, Marquardt Renee   Predictors of stress in parents of children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders Journal of developmental and behavioral pediatrics : JDBP, 2006; 27(5): 396-404.
O'Connor Mary J, Frankel Fred, Paley Blair, Schonfeld Amy M, Carpenter Erika, Laugeson Elizabeth A, Marquardt Renee   A controlled social skills training for children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 2006; 74(4): 639-48.
Floyd R Louise, O'Connor Mary J, Bertrand Jacquelyn, Sokol Robert   Reducing adverse outcomes from prenatal alcohol exposure: a clinical plan of action Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research, 2006; 30(8): 1271-5.
O'Connor Mary J, Paley Blair   The relationship of prenatal alcohol exposure and the postnatal environment to child depressive symptoms Journal of pediatric psychology, 2006; 31(1): 50-64.
O'Connor Mary J, Whaley Shannon E   Health care provider advice and risk factors associated with alcohol consumption following pregnancy recognition Journal of studies on alcohol, 2006; 67(1): 22-31.
Floyd R Louise, O'Connor Mary J, Sokol Robert J, Bertrand Jacquelyn, Cordero José F   Recognition and prevention of fetal alcohol syndrome Obstetrics and gynecology, 2005; 106(5 Pt 1): 1059-64.
O'Connor Mary J, Whaley Shannon E   Alcohol use in pregnant low-income women Journal of studies on alcohol, 2003; 64(6): 773-83.
Whaley Shannon E, O'Connor Mary J   Increasing the report of alcohol use among low-income pregnant women American journal of health promotion : AJHP, 2003; 17(6): 369-72.
O'Connor Mary J, Shah Bhavik, Whaley Shannon, Cronin Pegeen, Gunderson Brent, Graham John   Psychiatric illness in a clinical sample of children with prenatal alcohol exposure The American journal of drug and alcohol abuse, 2002; 28(4): 743-54.
O'Connor Mary J, Kogan Nina, Findlay Richard   Prenatal alcohol exposure and attachment behavior in children Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research, 2002; 26(10): 1592-602.