Research

Neural Correlates of Grief

Scientific contributions from Mary-Frances’ research investigate the way the brain processes the changing reality after the death of a loved one. Notably, her research was the first to use neuroimaging to investigate typical grief, and has now been cited nearly 200 times. Later work demonstrated that those with Complicated Grief show differential activation from those with Non-Complicated Grief, highlighting the uniqueness of the disorder. From her K award from the National Institute on Aging, she has published on the cognitive-affective dysregulation of Complicated Grief during the emotional Stroop task and hallmark symptoms of the clinical disorder.

Key Publications

Dwelling in Prolonged Grief: Resting State Functional Connectivity During Oxytocin and Placebo Administration
Seeley, S.H., Andrews-Hanna, J.R., Allen, J.J.B., & O'Connor, M.-F. (2022). Human Brain Mapping, 1-13.

Grieving as a Form of Learning: Insights From Neuroscience Applied to Grief and Loss
O'Connor, M.-F., & Seeley, S.H. (2022). Current Opinion in Psychology, 43, 317–322.

Yearning Predicts Subgenual Anterior Cingulate Activity in Bereaved Individuals
McConnell, M.H., Killgore, W.D.S., & O’Connor, M.F. (2018). Heliyon, 4, e00852. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2018.e00852. PMC6197542.

Craving Love? Complicated Grief Activates Brain’s Reward Center
O’Connor, M.-F., Wellisch, D.K., Stanton, A.L., Eisenberger, N.I., Irwin, M.R.,  Lieberman, M.D. (2008). NeuroImage, 42, 969-972. PMC2553561.

Functional Neuroanatomy of Grief: An fMRI Study
Gündel, H., O’Connor, M.-F., Littrell, L., Fort, C., & Lane, R. (2003). American Journal of Psychiatry, 160, 1946-1953.

Grief Stress Physiology

Additional work from Mary-Frances’ laboratory has investigated the biomarkers of adaptation during grief, primarily in the stress response systems (sympathetic nervous system and hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis) and the immune system. Supporting the hypothesis that Complicated Grief is the clinical outcome of concern in bereavement, she has demonstrated the flattened diurnal slope of cortisol in Complicated Grief compared to Non-Complicated Grief groups. In addition, she has extensively reviewed the work in this subfield.

Key Publications

A Systematic Review of the Association Between Bereavement and Biomarkers of Immune Function
Knowles, L.M., Ruiz, J.M., & O'Connor, M.F. (2019). Psychosomatic Medicine, 81(5):415-433. doi: 10.1097/PSY.0000000000000693.

When Grief Makes You Sick: Bereavement Induced Systemic Inflammation Is a Question of Genotype
Schultze-Florey, C.R., Martínez-Maza, O., Magpantay, L., Breen, E.C., Irwin, M.R., Gündel, H., O’Connor, M.-F. (2012). Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, 26, 1066–1071.

Catecholamine Predictors of Complicated Grief Treatment Outcomes
O’Connor, M.-F., Shear, M.K., Fox, R., Skritskaya, N., Campbell, B., Ghesquiere, A., Glickman, K. (2013). International Journal of Psychophysiology, 88, 349-352. NIHMS413016.

Diurnal Cortisol in Complicated and Non-Complicated Grief: Slope Differences Across the Day
O’Connor, M.-F., Wellisch, D.K., Stanton, A.L., Olmstead, R., & Irwin, M.R. (2012). Psychoneuroendocrinology, 37, 725-728. PMC3258306.

Prolonged Grief

A third area of Mary-Frances’ work includes the study of psychological outcomes in patient families after the death of a loved one. Specifically, she has contributed to understanding the psychological reaction to interpersonal loss, how adaptation happens in typical grief, and what factors lead to poor adaptation. These psychological factors include cognitive functioning, yearning and repetitive thought, and quality of life.

As part of a group of leaders in the fields of psychology and psychiatry, she has contributed to the argument that under specific extreme conditions, poor adaptation should be considered a disorder. This argument persuaded the committee developing the DSM-5-TR, and Prolonged Grief Disorder will be included in the next revision. The inclusion of Prolonged Grief Disorder in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) has made cultural considerations a critical topic in grief research.

Key Publications

A Controlled Trial of Two Mind-Body Interventions for Grief in Widows and Widowers
Knowles, L.M., Jovel, K.S., Mayer, C.M., Bottrill, K.C., Kaszniak, A.W., Sbarra, D.A., Lawrence, E.E. & O’Connor, M.-F. (2021). Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 89(7), 640–654.

Neuropsychological Correlates of Complicated Grief in Older Spousally Bereaved Adults
O’Connor, M.-F. & Arizmendi, B. (2014). Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences, 69B, 12-18.

Absent, But Not Gone: Interdependence in Couples’ Quality of Life Persists After a Partner’s Death
Bourassa, K.J., Knowles, L., Sbarra, D.A., O’Connor, M.F. (2016). Psychological Science, 27(2), 270-281. doi: 10.1177/0956797615618968.

Maladaptive Repetitive Thought as a Transdiagnostic Phenomenon and Treatment Target: An Integrative Review
Kaplan, D.M., Palitsky, R., Carey, A.L., Crane, T.E., Havens, C.M., Medrano, M.R., Reznik, S.J., Sbarra, D.A., & O’Connor, M.F. (2018). Journal of Clinical Psychology, 1–11.

Yearning and Its Measurement in Complicated Grief
Robinaugh, D.J., Mauro, C., Bui, E., Stone, L., Shah, R., Wang, Y., Skritskaya, N.A., Reynolds, C.F., Zisook, S., O’Connor, M.-F., Shear, K. & Simon, N.M. (2016). Journal of Loss and Trauma, 21(5), 410-420. doi: 10.1080/15325024.2015.1110447

Complicated Grief and Related Bereavement Issues for DSM-5
Shear, M.K., Duan, N., Reynolds, C., Simon, N., Zisook, S., Lebowitz, B., Sung, S., Guesquierre, A., Gorscak, B., Clayton, P., Ito, M., Nakajima, S., Konishi, T., Brent, D., Melhem, N., Meert, K., Schiff, M., Neimeyer, R., O’Connor, M.-F., First, M., Sareen, J., Bolton, J., Skritskaya, N., Mancini, A. (2011). Depression and Anxiety, 28, 103–117.

Prolonged Grief Disorder and the Cultural Crisis
Stelzer, E., Zhou, N., Maercker, A., O’Connor, M.-F., & Killikelly, C. (2020). Frontiers in Psychology, 10: 2982.