Julia O’Connor, PhD, MSW, MPH, is an assistant professor at the University of Central Florida in the School of Social Work and a member of the Violence Against Women faculty cluster with a secondary appointment in the College of Medicine, Department of Population Health Sciences. Julia’s research interests stem from a professional career with survivors of sexual and domestic violence. In the course of this career, she held various positions, including case manager and women’s advocate in numerous organizations and as a felony-level legal advocate. Additionally, she has extensive experience designing, implementing, and analyzing data on interpersonal violence. Julia’s research interests focus on violence against women namely primary prevention – stopping violent behaviors before they occur – including exploring attitudes and beliefs related to perpetrating violence against women as well as bystander interventions. Other research areas include understanding institutional measures, indicators, and responses to violence; marginalized populations experiences of violence; and understanding the impact of violence on survivors. Julia has served in AmeriCorps (Kent County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, WA, 2001-2002), the Peace Corps (Uganda, 2004-2006), and Peace Corps Response (Guyana, 2013-2014).
Credentials
- Ph.D., Doctor of Philosophy, Social Work, Rutgers University
- MSW, Master of Social Work, University of Maryland Baltimore
- MPH, Master of Public Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
- BA, Bachelor of Arts, Psychology, Kenyon College
Affiliations
- Society for Social Work and Research
- Violence Against Women Cluster
- College of Medicine, Department of Population Health Sciences
Areas of Specialty
- Violence Against Women
- Primary Prevention
- Campus Sexual Violence
- Perpetration
- Evaluation Research
- International Social Work
- HIV/AIDS
- Reproductive Health
SOW 5305: Social Work Practice I: Generalist Practice
SOW6109: Violence Against Women: Global Perspectives
SOW5404: Social Work Research
BSW Student Receives Alpha Eta Student Research Presentation Award
Mary Farley, a senior majoring in social work, received the Alpha Eta Student Research Presentation Award for her study “Access Barriers to Long-term Healthcare for Female Sexual Assault Survivors.” Farley...
UCF Survivor Link Training Program Inaugural Meeting
The UCF Survivor Link Training Program, which aims to train students in cases of domestic violence, held its first-ever meeting with its social work master’s students Wednesday night.
Survivor Link National Training Program Launches at UCF
In hopes of equipping students to better understand and assist families facing domestic violence, UCF has joined the network of universities administering Survivor Link. The program will support nine students...
Addressing Violence Against Women: A Q&A with UCF’s Julia O’Connor
Julia O’Connor discusses her research aimed at making a difference in interpersonal violence against women. As part of Women’s History Month, the Office of the Provost and Academic Affairs honors...
Social Work Faculty, Students and Alumni Present at Society for Social Work and Research Annual Conference
On January 12-16, teams of UCF School of Social Work faculty, students, alumni and other social work professionals will be presenting at the Society for Social Work and Research (SSWR)...