Prof Ronan O'Carroll

Ronan O'Carroll is President of the UK Society for Behavioural Medicine and is ex-chair of the BPS Division of Health Psychology-Scotland.  He is a member of the SIGN executive and the NICE organ transplantation clinical guideline group. He has also been invited to serve on the National Institute of Health Research, Health Services Research Board.  He a practising registered Clinical, Health and Neuropsychologist, and has published over 160 papers in peer-reviewed journals. 

He graduated from the University of Edinburgh in 1979 with a BSc in Biological Sciences, with Honours in Psychology. He then completed an MRC funded PhD studentship (1980-83) entitled “The behavioural effects of androgens in man”, supervised by John Bancroft at the MRC Reproductive Biology Unit in Edinburgh.  His PhD thesis was awarded the Kinsey Institute prize for outstanding doctoral research in 1984. He then trained as a Clinical Psychologist in Edinburgh (1983-85), and then worked as an NHS Clinical Psychologist (1985-88) before moving to Canada, to take up an Assistant Professor position at Memorial University, helping to run a Clinical Psychology post-graduate programme (1988-90).  He returned to Scotland, and took up a position as Senior Scientist at the MRC Brain Metabolism Unit in Edinburgh (1990-96), before accepting a post as Senior Research Fellow at the University of Stirling (1996-99).  He was then appointed Professor of Psychology at the University of St Andrews (1999-2003), before returning to take up the post of Professor of Psychology at the University of Stirling in February 2003.

1st year  -  PSY912 - Introductory Psychology II

2nd year -  PSY9A4 - Brain and Behaviour – Clinical Perspectives

3rd year -   PSY9AL - Clinical and Health Psychology

4th year -   PSY9XX - Behavioural Medicine and Psychobiology of Depression electives

Post-grad - MSc in Health Psychology

Eades C, Ferguson J & O’Carroll RE (2011) Public health in community pharmacy: A systematic review of pharmacist and consumer views. BMC Public Health, 11: 582. doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-11-582.

Cunningham MA, Swanson V, O'Carroll RE, Holdsworth RJ (2011) A brief psychological intervention to increase walking in patients with intermittent claudication: results of a pilot randomised controlled trial. British Journal of Surgery (in press)

Harper M, O’Connor RC & O’Carroll RE (2011) Increased mortality in parents bereaved in the first year of their child’s life.  BMJ Palliative Care (in press)

McGregor L, O’Carroll RE & Fergusson E (2011) Living organ donation: the effect of message frame on an altruistic behaviour. Journal of Health Psychology (in press)

Dickson A, O’Brien G, Ward R, Flowers P, Allan D & O’Carroll RE (2011) Adjustment and coping in spousal caregivers following a traumatic spinal cord injury: an interpretative phenomenological analysis. Journal of Health Psychology (in press)

O’Carroll RE,  Dryden J,  Hamilton-Barclay T & Ferguson E (2011) Increasing organ donor registration using Anticipated Regret – a pilot study.  Health Psychology  (in press).

Dickson A, Ward R, O’Brien G, Allan D & O’Carroll RE (2011) Difficulties adjusting to post-discharge life following a spinal cord injury: an interpretative phenomenological analysis. Psychology, Health & Medicine (in press).

O’Carroll RE (2011) Psychological aspects of liver disease and its treatment. Health Psychology Review (in press).

O’Carroll RE, Whittaker J, Hamilton B. Johnston M, Sudlow C & Dennis M (2011)  Predictors of adherence to secondary preventive medication in stroke patients. Annals of Behavioral Medicine (in press).

O’Carroll RE, Foster C, McGeechan G & Sandford K (2011) The “ick” factor, anticipated regret and willingness to become an organ donor. Health Psychology (in press).

Harper M, O’Connor RC, Dickson A & O’Carroll RE (2011) Bereaved Mothers Continuing Bonds and Ambivalence to their own Mortality after the Death of Their Child – An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Psychology, Health & Medicine (in press).

Chambers JA, O’Carroll RE, Hamilton B, Whittaker J, Johnston M, Dennis M & Sudlow S. (2011) Adherence to Medication in Stroke Survivors: A Qualitative Comparison of low and high Adherers. British Journal of Health Psychology (in press).

Sexton CE, Mackay CE, Lonie JA, Bastin ME, Terrière R, O'Carroll RE & Ebmeeier KP (2011) MRI correlates of episodic memory in Alzheimer's disease, mild cognitive impairment, and healthy aging. Psychiatry Research : Neuroimaging (in press).

Williams L, O’Connor RC, Grubb N & O’Carroll RE (2011) Type D Personality Predicts Poor Medication Adherence in Myocardial Infarction Patients. Psychology & Health (in press)

Weinman J, O’Carroll RE & Petrie KP (2011) Clinical Health Psychology.  Chapter in the International Association of Applied Psychology, Handbook of Applied Psychology (in press)

Styles M, Cheyne H, O’Carroll RE, Greig F, Dagge-Bell F & Niven C. (2011) The Development of Research Tools used in the STORK Study (The Scottish Trial of Refer or Keep) to explore Midwives’ Intrapartum Decision Making. Midwifery (in press)

Williams L, O’Connor RC, Grubb N & O’Carroll RE (2011) Type D Personality and illness perceptions in myocardial infarction patients. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 70, 141-144.

Styles M, Cheyne H,  O’Carroll RE, Greig F, Dagge-Bell F & Niven C (2011) The Scottish trial of refer or keep: the Stork study, midwives’ intrapartum decision making. Midwifery, 27, 104-111.

Dickson A, O’Brien G, Ward R, Allan D & O’Carroll, RE (2010) The impact of assuming the primary caregiver role following traumatic spinal cord injury: an interpretative phenomenological analysis of the spouse's experience. Psychology and Health, 25, 1101-1120.

Cunningham M, Swanson R, O'Carroll RE & Holdsworth RJ (2010) Increasing walking in patients with intermittent claudication: protocol for a randomised controlled trial BMC Cardiovascular Disorders  10:49 doi:/10.1186/1471-2261-10-49

Terrière E, Dempsey MF, Herrmann LL, Tierney, KM, Lonie JA, O’Carroll RE, Pimlott S, Wyper DJ, Herholz K, & Ebmeier, KP (2010) 5-123I-A-85380 binding to the α4-β2-nicotinic receptor in mild cognitive impairment.  Neurobiology of Aging 31, 1885-1893.

Lonie JA, Parra-Rodriguez MA, Tierney KM, Herrmann LL, Donaghey C, O’Carroll RE & Ebmeier KP (2010) Predicting outcome in mild cognitive impairment – a 4-year follow-up study. British Journal of Psychiatry, 197, 135-140.

Deady DK, North NT, Allan D, Law Smith MJ & O’Carroll RE (2010) Examining the effect of C6 total spinal cord transection on emotional awareness, expressivity and memory for emotional material. Psychology, Health & Medicine, 15, 406-419.

McGregor L, Swanson V, Hayes PC, Forsythe JR & O’Carroll RE (2010) Considering adult living donor liver transplantation: a qualitative study of patients and their potential donors. Psychology and Health, 6, 751-766.

O'Carroll RE, Dennis M, Johnston M & Sudlow C (2010) Improving Adherence to Medication in Stroke Survivors (IAMSS): a randomised controlled trial: study protocol. BMC Neurology 2010, 10:15doi:10.1186/1471-2377-10-15.

Ferguson E, Bibby PA, Rosamond S, O’Grady C, Parcell A, Amos C, McCutcheon C &  O’Carroll RE (2009) Alexithymia, cumulative cognitive feedback and performance on the Iowa Gambling Task.  Journal of Personality, 77, 883-902.

Lonie JA, Herrmann, LL, Tierney KM, Donaghey C, O'Carroll RE, Lee A & Ebmeier KP (2009) Lexical and semantic fluency discrepancy scores in aMCI and early Alzheimer's Disease.   Journal of Neuropsychology, 3,79-92.

Ferguson E, Williams L, O’Connor RC, Howard S, Hughes BM, Johnston DW, Allan, JL, O’Connor DB, Lewis CA, Grealy, M, & O’Carroll RE (2009)  A Taxometric Analysis of Type-D Personality.  Psychosomatic Medicine, 71, 981-986.

Dickson A, Toft A, & O’Carroll RE (2009) Neuropsychological Functioning, Illness Perception, Mood and Quality of Life in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Auto-Immune Thyroid Disease and Healthy Participants. Psychological Medicine, 39,1567-1576.

Lonie JA, Tierney KM, Hermann LL, Donaghey C, O'Carroll RE, Lee A & Ebmeier KP (2009) Dual Task Performance in early Alzheimer’s disease, amnestic mild cognitive impairment and depression. Psychological Medicine, 39, 23-31.

Wilcock  J, Bryans M, Turner S, O’Carroll RE, Keady J, Levin E, Iliffe S & Downs M   (2009)  Concordance with clinical practice guidelines for dementia in general practice  Aging and Mental Health Vol. 13, No. 2, 155–161.

Kidd L, Hubbard G, O'Carroll RE & Kearney N (2009): Perceived control and involvement in self care in patients with colorectal cancer. Journal of Clinical Nursing 18:2292-2300.

Ridout N,  Dritschel B, Matthews K, McVicar M, Reid I & O’Carroll RE (2009)    Memory for emotional faces in major depression following judgment of physical facial characteristics at encoding. Cognition and Emotion, 23, 739-52.

Williams, L., O'Connor, R.C. & O'Carroll, RE (2009) Type D personality and cardiac output in response to stress.  Psychology & Health, 24, 489-500.

Kirov G, Ebmeier KP, Scott A, Atkins M, Khald N, Carrick L, Stanfield A, O’Carroll RE, Husain M & Lisanby S (2008) Quick recovery of orientation after 100 Hz magnetic seizure therapy (MST) for major depressive disorder. British Journal of Psychiatry 193, 152-155.

Kidd L, , Kearney N,  O’Carroll RE & Hubbard G  (2008) Experiences of self-care in patients with colorectal cancer: A longitudinal study. Journal of Advanced Nursing 64,469-477.

Dickson A, Allan D & O’Carroll RE (2008) Biographical Disruption and the Experience of Loss Following a Spinal Cord Injury: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis.  Psychology & Health 23, 407-425.

McGregor L, O’Carroll RE & Hayes PC (2008)  Living liver donation: Attitudes of the general public and general practitioners in Scotland  Psychology & Health, 25 ,603-616.

Fraser LM, O’Carroll RE, Ebmeier KP (2008) The effect of ECT on autobiographical memory: a systematic review. Journal of ECT,24,10-17.

O'Carroll RE (2008) Neuropsychological aspects of liver disease and its treatment. Neurochemical Research, 33,683-690.

O’Carroll RE, Turner F, Flatley F, McGregor LM &  Hayes PC (2008) Functional outcome following liver transplantation.  Psychology Health & Medicine  13, 239-248.

Williams, L., O'Connor, R.C., Howard, S., Hughes, B.M., Johnston, D.W., Hay, J.L., O'Connor, D.B., Lewis, C.A., Ferguson, E., Sheehy, N., Grealy, M.A. & O'Carroll, R.E. (2008) Type D Personality Mechanisms of Effect: The Role of Health-Related Behaviour and Social Support. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 64, 63-69.

Grubb NR, Simpson K, Sherwood RA, Abraha HD, Cobbe SM, O’Carroll RE, Deary I, & Fox KAA (2007)  Prediction of cognitive dysfunction after resuscitation from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest using serum neuron-specific enolase and protein S-100. Heart, 93, 1268-1273.

Ridout N, O’Carroll RE, Dritschel B, Christmas D, Eljamel MS, & Mathews K (2007) Emotion recognition from dynamic emotional displays following anterior cingulotomy and anterior capsulotomy for chronic depression.  Neuropsychologia, 45, 1735-1743.

Choudhary C & O’Carroll RE (2007) Left hand preference is related to Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.   Journal of Traumatic Stress 20, 365-369.

Morrison G, O’Carroll RE, McCreadie, RG  (2006).  The long term course of cognitive impairment in schizophrenia.  British Journal of Psychiatry, 189, 556-557.

O’Carroll RE, McGregor, LM, Swanson V, Masterton G & Hayes PC  (2006) Adherence to medication following liver transplantation in Scotland.  Liver Transplantation, 12, 1862-1868.

Wilcock  J, Bryans M, Turner S, O’Carroll R, Keady J, Levin E, Iliffe S & Downs M   (2006)  Methodological problems in dementia research in primary care: a case study of a randomised controlled trial.  Primary Health Care Research and Development, 7, 1-10.

Downs M, Turner S, Bryans M, Wilcock J, Keady J, Levin E, O’Carroll RE, Howie K, & Iliffe S, (2006).  Effectiveness of educational interventions in improving detection and management of dementia in primary care: a cluster randomised controlled study.   British Medical Journal, 332, 692-696.

Downs, M Ariss S, Grant E, Keady J, Turner S, Bryans M, Wilcock J, Levin E, O'Carroll R, & Iliffe S  (2006)  Family carers' accounts of general practice contacts for their relatives with early signs of dementia. Dementia  5: 353-373.

Drummond LE, Dritschel B, Astell A, O’Carroll RE & Dalgleish T (2006)  Effects of age, dysphoria and  emotion-focusing on autobiographical memory specificity in children.   Cognition and Emotion, 20, 488-505.

McGregor, L, & O'Carroll RE (2006).   Living donor liver transplants.  The Psychologist, 19, 138-139.

Turner S, Iliffe S, Downs M, Wilcock J, Bryans M, Levin E, Keady J, O’Carroll RE, (2004)   General practitioners' knowledge, confidence and attitudes in the diagnosis and management of dementia. Age and Ageing, 33, 5, 461-467.

O’Reilly SM, Grubb NR, O’Carroll RE (2004).  Long-term emotional consequences of in-hospital cardiac arrest. 

British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 43, 83-96.

O’Carroll RE, et al. (2003).  Psychological outcome and quality of life following liver transplantation:  a controlled, prospective single-centre study.  Liver Transplantation, 9, 712-720.

O’Carroll RE, Ayling R, O’Reilly S, North NT (2003). Alexithymia and sense of coherence in patients with total spinal cord transection.  Psychosomatic Medicine,65: 151-155.

O’Reilly SM, Grubb NR, O’Carroll RE (2003).  In-hospital cardiac arrest leads to chronic memory impairment.  Resuscitation, 58, 73-79.

O’Carroll RE, Papps B. (2003)  Decision making in humans : the effect of manipulating the central noradrenergic system. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry 74:376-378.

Papps BP, Calder AJ, Young AW, O’Carroll RE (2003).  Dissociation of affective modulation of recollective and perceptual experience following amygdala damage.  Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry 74, 253-254.

Ridout N, Astell AJ, Reid IC, Glen T, O’Carroll RE (2003).  Memory bias for emotional facial expressions in major depression. Cognition and Emotion,17,101-122.

Papps B, Ebmeier KP, Shajahan P, O’Carroll RE (2002).  The effects of noradrenergic re-uptake inhibition on memory encoding in man.  Psychopharmacology, 159, 311-318.

O’Carroll RE, Smith K, Grubb N, Fox KAA, Masterton G (2001).  Psychological factors associated with delay in attending hospital following a myocardial infarction.  Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 51, 611-614.

North NT, O’Carroll RE (2001)  Decision making in patients with spinal cord damage: afferent feedback and the somatic marker hypothesis.  Neuropsychologia, 39, 521-524.

Grubb NR, Fox KA, Smith K, Best J, Blane A, Ebmeier KP, Glabus M, O’Carroll RE  (2000). Memory impairment in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survivors is associated with global reduction in brain volume, not focal hippocampal injury. Stroke 31:1509-14.