Nicole McDonald

Dr. Nicole McDonald is a licensed clinical psychologist and an assistant clinical professor in the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior and UCLA Center for Autism Research and Treatment. Clinically, she specializes in neurodevelopmental assessment, especially in younger children and children with rare genetic syndromes. She has expertise in the measurement of early social-communication behavior and is a certified Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) trainer. Dr. McDonald also specializes in parent-mediated behavioral interventions, with a focus on Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT). She co-developed and co-leads the PCIT Clinic at UCLA. Her research integrates behavioral and neuroscience methods (fNIRS and EEG) to better understand autism and neurodevelopmental concerns as they first arise in developmentally and often medically complex populations (e.g., NICU graduates), with an increasing focus on adapting interventions to better suit these children and families.