Karen O’donnell
Biographic Data
| ID | 3824740 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Karen O’donnell |
| GIVEN NAMES | Karen |
| FAMILY NAME | O’donnell |
| SIGNATURE | O’DONNELL K |
| AFFILIATIONS | Duke University |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-6070-8949 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 32 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 23 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 32 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2009 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
“Since I got the education, I feel like a kind of warrior”
Adolescents and young adults with HIV (AYAWH) face challenges with medication adherence and are at risk of mental health (MH) difficulties. Sauti ya Vijana (SYV, The Voice of Youth) is a co-created, peer-led, group-based MH intervention designed to address these needs. This study aimed to: (1) evaluate how participation in SYV impacted AYAWH’s lives in Tanzania and (2) explore AYAWH perspectives and preferences of the intervention. The SYV trial …
Dismantling the Patriarchy
Has the patriarchy already been smashed? Can feminist theology see this work as completed? This article argues that while talking about patriarchy has become less common in feminist theology (replaced in some cases by wider discussions on gender), Christianity is still deeply patriarchal. Entwined with, and often at the root of, colonialism, racism and classism, I argue that patriarchy is a sin that should be dismantled by those who claim to foll…
Trauma Theology
Trauma theology seeks to do theological justice to trauma experiences and to reimagine theologies in the light of such experiences. Distinct from suffering, trauma theologies wrestle with doctrine, scripture and modes of pastoral care, seeking to develop life-giving narratives and practices. Offering rich, nuanced and profound insights, this burgeoning field has grown in the last 25 years to draw on a wide range of perspectives and experiences. T…
Thicc Theologies Save Lives
The Christian tradition has long presented the ideal Christian woman as slender, serene, and fertile. In this article, I demonstrate that this is both a historical trope and a contemporary reality. Drawing on my own autoethnographic reflections of my experience in conservative Christian circles, I articulate the problems being emotional, infertile, and fat caused in this context. I turn to the Shulammite woman in the Song of Songs as offering a m…
Interview with Dr Karen O’Donnell
Unique Profiles of Postpartum Family Needs and Evidence of Racial and Ethnic Disparities
Complicating Conversations
The question at the heart of the matter of abortion is who has the moral authority to decide whether, and under what circumstances, it is ethically justifiable for an abortion to be carried out. Public moral discourse about abortion rests moral authority in one of two poles—either legislators and/or medical professionals or the pregnant person. This article attempts to complicate this discourse through the English Anglican approach of moral disce…
Flesh & blood
The experience of reproductive loss has long been shrouded in silences. Theological silence has been one among many. In this article, I examine what it might mean to take the embodied experience of miscarriage as a site for theological reimagining. What does theology look like from this perspective? This question lends itself to the growing body of contextual theologies that recognise there is no neutral space from which to do theology and offers…
The complexity of multiple trauma understandings across disciplines – the Covid-19 pandemic as a ‘case’
Trauma is a highly topical subject of growing relevance in different contexts and scientific traditions that deal with societal challenges and transformation. At the same time, knowledge on different understandings of trauma is still scarce and scattered across disciplines. Against this background, we present and discuss the complexity of trauma understandings from five selected disciplinary perspectives and its significance at individual, group,…
Fragments from within the pandemic
This article is a methodological experiment in ‘live’ theology. It reflects on the difficulty of creating theological meaning in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. Drawing on trauma theology, disability theology, and autoethnographic reflections, we explore a particular “double bind” between silence and speech. While hurried speech can foreclose meaning and cause deep damage in the midst of unfolding trauma, theological silence risks conceali…
The theologian as dreamer
This article reflects on the theologian as dreamer in the context of human enhancement, artificial intelligence and digital technology. In positioning the theologian as the dreamer of possible futures, I argue that it is the responsibility of the theologian to engage in exploration of such an imagined future in our service to the public, both in the ecclesial community and beyond. This theological endeavour is both practical (in that it begins wi…
The contribution of grandmother involvement to child growth and development
INTRODUCTION: Early childhood interventions primarily focus on the mother-child relationship, but grandmothers are often critical in childcare in low-resource settings. Prior research is mixed on how grandmother involvement influences child outcomes and there is a paucity of research on grandmother caregiving in low-income and middle-income countries. We examined the role of grandmother involvement on child growth and development in the first 2 y…
Rethinking relationships in cyberspace
The ubiquity of the internet, which has been extensively theorised in the social sciences, provides, for some, a radically new context in which we must rethink both the significance and the performance of being human. For others, the internet is an extension rather than revision of our pre-existing practices, meaning that what it is to be human remains largely unchanged. This is a stimulating and pressing context for theological anthropological r…
A Feminist Approach to the Marian Temple Type
The opening chapter of the Gospel of Luke establishes a connection between the Temple and Mary, the mother of Jesus. This connection is developed over the centuries by theologians, often in connection to Marian doctrines, but also in service of Christology. This research considers what the theological implications of such a typology might be—what are theologians saying about Mary, and often Jesus, when they draw a typological connection between t…
Women and the Eucharist
The position and power of women in the early church has been much explored by scholars such as Karen Jo Torjesen and Virginia Burrus. Research has often indicated that women had little power, especially sacramental power, at this time. This article challenges such a perspective by examining and comparing three accounts of women’s experience of the Eucharist in the private sphere during the third century. Drawing on Gregory of Nyssa’s account of M…
Father involvement in the first year of life
Socioeconomic status indicators and common mental disorders
There is growing interest in the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES), poverty, and mental health in low and middle-income countries (LMIC). However, it is not clear whether a gradient approach focused on a wider SES distribution or a binary poverty approach is more salient for mental health in LMIC. Yet this distinction has implications for interventions aimed at improving population health. We contribute to the literature by examinin…
Our Lady of the Nations
Political Trauma and Healing
Mark Brett writes this latest monograph from his Australian context, acutely in tune with the legacy of colonialism in general, and the specific atrocities of the treatment of Indigenous and First
Civic engagement among orphans and non-orphans in five low- and middle-income countries
BACKGROUND: Communities and nations seeking to foster social responsibility in their youth are interested in understanding factors that predict and promote youth involvement in public activities. Orphans and separated children (OSC) are a vulnerable population whose numbers are increasing, particularly in resource-poor settings. Understanding whether and how OSC are engaged in civic activities is important for community and world leaders who need…
Potentially traumatic experiences and sexual health among orphaned and separated adolescents in five low- and middle-income countries
Orphans and separated children (OSC) are a vulnerable population whose numbers are increasing, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. Over 153 million children worldwide have lost one or both parents, including 17 million orphaned by AIDS, and millions more have been separated from their parents. As younger orphans enter adolescence, their sexual health and HIV-related risk behaviors become key considerations for their overall health. Impor…
Evaluating mental health difficulties and associated outcomes among HIV-positive adolescents in Tanzania
AIDS-related mortality among HIV-positive adolescents has risen by 50% despite the scale up of antiretroviral therapy (ART). ART maladherence likely plays a role in the increase of AIDS-related deaths among adolescents and has shown to be associated with psychosocial and mental health difficulties. Addressing the specific mental health needs of HIV-positive adolescents is critical to ending the HIV epidemic. This cross-sectional study prospective…
Trinitarian Theology and Power Relations
Help for Heroes
The incidence of PTSD is on a steady rise in combative countries around the world, and civilian churches are increasingly like to encounter persons suffering from PTSD. This article will consider the ancient rituals for the purification of warriors after battle to demonstrate the responsibility of the church toward returning warriors and explore how the liturgy can function as a place for recovery. I will demonstrate how the sacraments of Reconci…
Reimagining theologies of marriage in contexts of domestic violence
"Reimagining theologies of marriage in contexts of domestic violence: when salvation is survival." Practical Theology, 13(4), pp. 446–447
Implementation and Randomized Controlled Trial Evaluation of Universal Postnatal Nurse Home Visiting
Objectives. We evaluated whether a brief, universal, postnatal nurse home-visiting intervention can be implemented with high penetration and fidelity, prevent emergency health care services, and promote positive parenting by infant age 6 months. Methods. Durham Connects is a manualized 4- to 7-session program to assess family needs and connect parents with community resources to improve infant health and well-being. All 4777 resident births in Du…
Father involvement in the first year of life
A Comparison of the Wellbeing of Orphans and Abandoned Children Ages 6–12 in Institutional and Community-Based Care Settings in 5 Less Wealthy Nations
BACKGROUND: Leaders are struggling to care for the estimated 143,000,000 orphans and millions more abandoned children worldwide. Global policy makers are advocating that institution-living orphans and abandoned children (OAC) be moved as quickly as possible to a residential family setting and that institutional care be used as a last resort. This analysis tests the hypothesis that institutional care for OAC aged 6-12 is associated with worse heal…
Prevalence and predictors of HIV-related stigma among institutional- and community-based caregivers of orphans and vulnerable children living in five less-wealthy countries
The caregiver-child relationship is central to a child's development. OAC already face stigma as a result of their orphaned or abandoned status; the addition of HIV-related stigma represents a double burden for these children. Further research on the prevalence of HIV-related acceptance and stigma among caregivers and implications of such stigma for child development will be critical as the policy community responds to the global HIV/AIDS orphan …
Child work and labour among orphaned and abandoned children in five low and middle income countries
BACKGROUND: The care and protection of the estimated 143,000,000 orphaned and abandoned children (OAC) worldwide is of great importance to global policy makers and child service providers in low and middle income countries (LMICs), yet little is known about rates of child labour among OAC, what child and caregiver characteristics predict child engagement in work and labour, or when such work infers with schooling. This study examines rates and co…
A Brief Assessment of Learning for Orphaned and Abandoned Children in Low and Middle Income Countries
Adverse childhood experiences, psychosocial well-being and cognitive development among orphans and abandoned children in five low income countries
BACKGROUND: Development policymakers and child-care service providers are committed to improving the educational opportunities of the 153 million orphans worldwide. Nevertheless, the relationship between orphanhood and education outcomes is not well understood. Varying factors associated with differential educational attainment leave policymakers uncertain where to intervene. This study examines the relationship between psychosocial well-being an…
Low rates of child testing for HIV persist in a high-risk area of East Africa
Children in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) are the least touched by recent successes in the diagnosis and treatment of HIV/AIDS globally. Early treatment is essential for a child's longer and higher quality of life; however, by 2011, only a small proportion of HIV-seropositive children in LMIC countries were receiving treatment, in part because of persisting low rates of diagnosis. This study of the prevalence and characteristics of chil…
Implementation and Randomized Controlled Trial Evaluation of Universal Postnatal Nurse Home Visiting
Objectives. We evaluated whether a brief, universal, postnatal nurse home-visiting intervention can be implemented with high penetration and fidelity, prevent emergency health care services, and promote positive parenting by infant age 6 months. Methods. Durham Connects is a manualized 4- to 7-session program to assess family needs and connect parents with community resources to improve infant health and well-being. All 4777 resident births in Du…
Help for Heroes
The incidence of PTSD is on a steady rise in combative countries around the world, and civilian churches are increasingly like to encounter persons suffering from PTSD. This article will consider the ancient rituals for the purification of warriors after battle to demonstrate the responsibility of the church toward returning warriors and explore how the liturgy can function as a place for recovery. I will demonstrate how the sacraments of Reconci…
Civic engagement among orphans and non-orphans in five low- and middle-income countries
BACKGROUND: Communities and nations seeking to foster social responsibility in their youth are interested in understanding factors that predict and promote youth involvement in public activities. Orphans and separated children (OSC) are a vulnerable population whose numbers are increasing, particularly in resource-poor settings. Understanding whether and how OSC are engaged in civic activities is important for community and world leaders who need…
Potentially traumatic experiences and sexual health among orphaned and separated adolescents in five low- and middle-income countries
Orphans and separated children (OSC) are a vulnerable population whose numbers are increasing, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. Over 153 million children worldwide have lost one or both parents, including 17 million orphaned by AIDS, and millions more have been separated from their parents. As younger orphans enter adolescence, their sexual health and HIV-related risk behaviors become key considerations for their overall health. Impor…
Evaluating mental health difficulties and associated outcomes among HIV-positive adolescents in Tanzania
AIDS-related mortality among HIV-positive adolescents has risen by 50% despite the scale up of antiretroviral therapy (ART). ART maladherence likely plays a role in the increase of AIDS-related deaths among adolescents and has shown to be associated with psychosocial and mental health difficulties. Addressing the specific mental health needs of HIV-positive adolescents is critical to ending the HIV epidemic. This cross-sectional study prospective…
Trinitarian Theology and Power Relations
Socioeconomic status indicators and common mental disorders
There is growing interest in the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES), poverty, and mental health in low and middle-income countries (LMIC). However, it is not clear whether a gradient approach focused on a wider SES distribution or a binary poverty approach is more salient for mental health in LMIC. Yet this distinction has implications for interventions aimed at improving population health. We contribute to the literature by examinin…
Our Lady of the Nations
Political Trauma and Healing
Mark Brett writes this latest monograph from his Australian context, acutely in tune with the legacy of colonialism in general, and the specific atrocities of the treatment of Indigenous and First
Women and the Eucharist
The position and power of women in the early church has been much explored by scholars such as Karen Jo Torjesen and Virginia Burrus. Research has often indicated that women had little power, especially sacramental power, at this time. This article challenges such a perspective by examining and comparing three accounts of women’s experience of the Eucharist in the private sphere during the third century. Drawing on Gregory of Nyssa’s account of M…
Father involvement in the first year of life
The contribution of grandmother involvement to child growth and development
INTRODUCTION: Early childhood interventions primarily focus on the mother-child relationship, but grandmothers are often critical in childcare in low-resource settings. Prior research is mixed on how grandmother involvement influences child outcomes and there is a paucity of research on grandmother caregiving in low-income and middle-income countries. We examined the role of grandmother involvement on child growth and development in the first 2 y…
Rethinking relationships in cyberspace
The ubiquity of the internet, which has been extensively theorised in the social sciences, provides, for some, a radically new context in which we must rethink both the significance and the performance of being human. For others, the internet is an extension rather than revision of our pre-existing practices, meaning that what it is to be human remains largely unchanged. This is a stimulating and pressing context for theological anthropological r…
A Feminist Approach to the Marian Temple Type
The opening chapter of the Gospel of Luke establishes a connection between the Temple and Mary, the mother of Jesus. This connection is developed over the centuries by theologians, often in connection to Marian doctrines, but also in service of Christology. This research considers what the theological implications of such a typology might be—what are theologians saying about Mary, and often Jesus, when they draw a typological connection between t…
Fragments from within the pandemic
This article is a methodological experiment in ‘live’ theology. It reflects on the difficulty of creating theological meaning in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. Drawing on trauma theology, disability theology, and autoethnographic reflections, we explore a particular “double bind” between silence and speech. While hurried speech can foreclose meaning and cause deep damage in the midst of unfolding trauma, theological silence risks conceali…
The theologian as dreamer
This article reflects on the theologian as dreamer in the context of human enhancement, artificial intelligence and digital technology. In positioning the theologian as the dreamer of possible futures, I argue that it is the responsibility of the theologian to engage in exploration of such an imagined future in our service to the public, both in the ecclesial community and beyond. This theological endeavour is both practical (in that it begins wi…
Flesh & blood
The experience of reproductive loss has long been shrouded in silences. Theological silence has been one among many. In this article, I examine what it might mean to take the embodied experience of miscarriage as a site for theological reimagining. What does theology look like from this perspective? This question lends itself to the growing body of contextual theologies that recognise there is no neutral space from which to do theology and offers…
The complexity of multiple trauma understandings across disciplines – the Covid-19 pandemic as a ‘case’
Trauma is a highly topical subject of growing relevance in different contexts and scientific traditions that deal with societal challenges and transformation. At the same time, knowledge on different understandings of trauma is still scarce and scattered across disciplines. Against this background, we present and discuss the complexity of trauma understandings from five selected disciplinary perspectives and its significance at individual, group,…
Complicating Conversations
The question at the heart of the matter of abortion is who has the moral authority to decide whether, and under what circumstances, it is ethically justifiable for an abortion to be carried out. Public moral discourse about abortion rests moral authority in one of two poles—either legislators and/or medical professionals or the pregnant person. This article attempts to complicate this discourse through the English Anglican approach of moral disce…
Medicine (18 works) · Sociology (16 works) · Philosophy (13 works) · Psychology (11 works) · Theology (10 works) · Christian Theology and Mission (7 works) · Demography (7 works) · Epistemology (7 works) · Nursing (7 works) · Poverty, Education, and Child Welfare (7 works)