Melissa O'Connor

Melissa L. O’Connor is an assistant professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Science at North Dakota State University. She is originally from Minnesota. She earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from St. Cloud State University in 2003. She received a master’s degree in experimental psychology from the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh in 2006 and a doctorate in aging studies from the University of South Florida in 2010. 

Prior to joining the faculty at NDSU, O’Connor completed a post-doctoral fellowship in quantitative psychology at the University of Virginia. She currently teaches undergraduate and graduate-level courses in adult development and aging, cognitive development, and statistics/research methods. Her research laboratory is called the Healthy Aging Lab, and her scholarly interests include examining age-related changes in cognitive and functional abilities, such as driving, interventions for improving cognitive abilities, and attitudes toward dementia. She is a member of the American Psychological Association and the Gerontological Society of America.

Ph.D. in Aging Studies, University of South Florida, 2010
M.S. in Experimental Psychology, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, 2006
B.A. in Psychology, St. Cloud State University, 2003