Ann Neville-Jan, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA

Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy

Room: CHP 133
Phone: (323) 442-2884
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Biography

Ann Neville-Jan joined the University of Southern California's then-Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy in 1989. In the decades since, she has taught research, theory and clinical courses in the minor in occupational science, the occupational therapy professional program and the PhD program in occupational science. Her courses have included content necessary for mental health practice in occupational therapy, occupational science theory, and disability studies. Prior to her full time academic career she held positions as Director of Occupational Therapy at the Boston Veterans Administration Medical Center, as the Rehabilitation Coordinator for Psychiatric Services at the West Los Angeles Veterans Administration Medical Center and as the Education Coordinator at the Sepulveda Veterans Administration Medical Center.

Her publication and research areas include chronic pain, depression, and secondary conditions associated with disability. Past research has included a study, funded by the American Cancer Society, of the everyday experiences of Latinas with pain from breast cancer and another study, funded by the American Occupational Therapy Foundation, of individuals diagnosed with Major Depression. Dr. Neville-Jan is an expert in spina bifida, both as a consumer of services and as a research scientist. She has held positions with the American Occupational Therapy Association and has been invited to participate on panels of the American Occupational Therapy Foundation, the American Academy of Cerebral Palsy and Developmental Medicine, and was a recent occupational therapy consultant to the NIH's National Center for Medical Rehabilitation Research.

Research Interests

From 2001 - 2004, Dr. Neville-Jan and Dr. Mary Lawlor, through an NIH-funded disability supplement, conducted a research study focused on the everyday life experiences of 14 adults with spina bifida, using narrative, ethnographic and longitudinal methods. They continue to examine the data across the cohort of 14 adults respective to developmental trajectories, how ordinary participation becomes extraordinary and the significance of life choices for social participation and identity shaping. More recently, Dr. Neville-Jan, and a multidisciplinary and multi-site team (physicians, nurses, psychologists, and occupational therapists) are conducting a CDC- and AUCDD-funded study of the effectiveness of bowel and bladder interventions for children with spina bifida, using both quantitative and qualitative methods. As Co-Principal Investigator, Dr. Neville-Jan leads the qualitative component of the grant. Interviews are presently being conducted with children as young as 5 years of age, family members, and practitioners at the Spina Bifida Clinic at Children's Hospital Los Angeles to understand the struggles and successes related to this potentially stigmatizing issue.

Education

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph D) in Occupational Therapy
New York University
1986

Master of Science (MS) in Occupational Therapy
Columbia College
1974

Bachelor of Science (BS) in Biology
Towson State Univ
1972

Publications

Book Chapters

Neville-Jan, A. M., Fazio, L., Kennedy, B. L., & Snyder, C. (1997). Elementary to middle school transition: Using multicultural play activities to develop life skills. In D. Parham & L. Fazio (Eds.), Play in occupational therapy. St. Louis, MO: Mosby.

Barris, R., Levine, R., & Neville-Jan, A. M. (1985). The environment. In G. Kielhofner (Ed.), The model of human occupation: Theory and application. Baltimore: William and Wilkins.

Barris, R., Kielhofner, G., Neville-Jan, A. M., Oakley, F., & Salz, C. (1985). Psychosocial dysfunction. In G. Kielhofner (Ed.), A model of human occupation: Theory and application. Baltimore: William and Wilkins.

Neville-Jan, A. M. (1981). Temporal adaptation: Application with short term psychiatric patients. In Briggs, A. & Agrin, A. (Eds.), Crossroads: A reader for psychosocial occupational therapy. Rockville, Maryland: American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.

Journal Articles

Neville-Jan, A. M. (2005). The problem with prevention: The case of spina bifida. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 59(5), 527-539. Abstract →← Abstract

In this paper, I present a viewpoint about prevention and spina bifida that is not usually expressed within the occupational therapy literature. Using an autoethnographic account, I convey my experiences as a person with impairments from spina bifida in order to problematize current preventive efforts undertaken to eradicate this birth defect. This self-reflexive account connects my personal experiences to historical and medical views about spina bifida. The messages inherent in preventive efforts are discussed from a disability rights perspective. Occupational therapists are challenged to examine their attitudes toward disability, act as advocates in their practice, and, in a more informed manner, support or contest policy initiatives.

Neville-Jan, A. M. (2004). Selling your soul to the devil: An autoethnography of pain, pleasure, and the quest for a child. Disability and Society, 19(2), 113-128. Abstract →← Abstract

In this article the author presents an autoethnography in the form of a quest narrative linked as a self-reflexive text to her continuing research of children and adults with spina bifida. The story centers on the themes of chronic illness, pain and sexuality, highlighting gaps in the literature related to these topics. She narrates her story as a manifesto for women with physical impairments to break their silence and talk about their sexuality. She recommends autoethnography as a method of understanding disability as embodied.

Neville-Jan, A. M., & Lawlor, M. C. (2003). Managing appearance: A qualitative study of adults with spina bifida. European Journal of Pediatric Surgery, 13, S1-S11.

Neville-Jan, A. M. (2003). Encounters in a world of pain. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 57(1), 88-98. Abstract →← Abstract

Pain, a major health problem in the United States, is a highly complex and subjective experience that is poorly understood by many medical, psychological, and rehabilitation practitioners. In this paper I use a qualitative research methodology, autoethnography, to present a personal narrative about my experience of chronic pain. In this research I am both the research participant and the researcher. I begin with my personal narrative. I then problematize conceptions about chronic pain and discuss them from the point of view of my own narrative and from stories and ethnographies in the literature. Finally I reflect on how occupational therapists can more effectively work with persons with chronic pain.

Neville-Jan, A. M. (1994). The relationship of volition to adaptive occupational behavior among individuals with varying degrees of depression. Occupational Therapy in Mental Health, 12(4), 1-18. Abstract →← Abstract

ABSTRACT. Using the model of human occupation as a theoretical framework, this study examined the relationship between volition and adaptive occupational behavior among subjects with varying degrees of depression. Clinical observation and a review of the literature suggested three variables from the model's volition subsystem as deficient in people who are depressed I hypothesized that these three variables, namely locus of control, interest, and future time perspective affect the depressed person's ability to engage in adaptive occupational behavior. A correlational design was used to examine this relationship. One hundred volunteers from inpatient psychiatric units, outpatient psychiatric programs, and evening college classes participated in the study. Each subject completed an internalexternal locus of control scale, a future time perspective inventory, a measure of interest (both degree of participation and degree of enjoyment), and a measure of severity of depression. In addition, the researcher (and assistants) interviewed each subject about their use of time. This interview provided a measure of adaptive occupational behavior. Partial correlation aeysis, controlling for depression, showed a signiticant posihve relabonship between volition and adaptive ccupational behavior. Of the three variables studied, pleasure (a dimension of interest) showed the strongest association wth adapbve occupational behavior. Locus of control showed a small relationship and future time perspective a significant negligible positive association Implications for future research are suggested.

Neville-Jan, A. M., Piersol, C., Kielhofner, G., & Davis, K. (1993). Adaptive equipment: A study of utilization after hospital discharge. Occupational Therapy in Health Care, 8, 3-18.

Clark, F. A., Zemke, R., Frank, G., Parham, D., Neville-Jan, A. M., Hedricks, C., Carlson, M. E., Fazio, L., & Abreu, B. (1993). Dangers inherent in the partition of occupational therapy and occupational science [The issue is]. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 47, 184-186. doi:10.5014/ajot.47.2.184.

Neville-Jan, A. M., Bradley, M., Bunn, C., & Gehri, B. (1991). The model of human occupation and individuals with co-dependency problems. Occupational Therapy in Mental Health, 11(2).

Neville-Jan, A. M., Kreisberg, A., & Kielhofner, G. (1985). Temporal dysfunction in schizophrenia. Occupational Therapy in Mental Health, 5(1), 1-17. Abstract →← Abstract

Persons diagnosed as schizophrenic present with a number of temporally related dysfunctions. The model of human occupation is used as a way of organizing and understanding the multifactoral nature of temporal dysfunctions in schizophrenic disorder. A case vignette illustrates these temporal problems. Temporally-oriented assessment and treatment strategies are presented. Finally, research questions are suggested to further explore the temporal dimension in schizophrenic individuals.

Neville-Jan, A. M. (1980). Temporal adaptation: Application with short term psychiatric patients. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 34(5), 328-31. Abstract →← Abstract

This paper begins with a literature review to investigate temporal dysfunction and its relationship to psychopathology and to adaptation. A specific program begun in a short-term hospital with psychiatric patients is then described. This program uses temporal adaptation as a framework for assessing patients' use of time and for developing methods to increase productive use of time.