| Social policy in Aotearoa New Zealand: A critical introduction C Cheyne, M O'Brien, M Belgrave Oxford University Press, 1997 | 456 | 1997 |
| Empowering social action through narratives of identity and culture L Williams, R Labonte, M O’Brien Health promotion international 18 (1), 33-40, 2003 | 189 | 2003 |
| The New Zealand non-profit sector in comparative perspective J Sanders, M O’Brien, M Tennant, SW Sokolowski, LM Salamon Wellington: Office for the Community and Voluntary Sector, 2008 | 123 | 2008 |
| Social justice: Alive and well (partly) in social work practice? M O'Brien International Social Work 54 (2), 174-190, 2011 | 119 | 2011 |
| The history of the non-profit sector in New Zealand M Tennant, M O'Brien, J Sanders Office for the Community and Voluntary Sector, 2008 | 79 | 2008 |
| The tragedy of the market: a social experiment on New Zealand M O'Brien, C Wilkes (No Title), 1993 | 72 | 1993 |
| The tragedy of the market: a social experiment on New Zealand M O'Brien, C Wilkes (No Title), 1993 | 72 | 1993 |
| The New Zealand non-profit sector and government policy M O’Brien, J Sanders, M Tennant Wellington: Office for the Community and Voluntary Sector, 2009 | 55 | 2009 |
| Left further behind: How policies fail the poorest children in New Zealand MC Dale, M O'Brien, SS John Child Poverty Action Group, 2011 | 45 | 2011 |
| What’s your agenda? Reflective supervision in community-based child welfare services M Rankine, L Beddoe, M O’Brien, C Fouché Contemporary Practices in Social Work Supervision, 100-112, 2020 | 41 | 2020 |
| The triplets: Investment in outcomes for the vulnerable-reshaping social services for (some) New Zealand children M O'Brien Aotearoa New Zealand Social Work 28 (2), 9-21, 2016 | 40 | 2016 |
| Setting the Record Straight: Social Development in Aotearoa/New Zealand: a Response to the New Zealand Government's Paper to the Social Development Summit, Copenhagen, March 1995 J Kelsey, M O'Brien Association of Non Government Organisations of Aotearoa, 1995 | 35 | 1995 |
| Our children, our choice: Priorities for policy. J Ritchie, N Harvey, M Kayes, C Smith Child Poverty Action Group, 2014 | 31 | 2014 |
| Poverty, policy and the state M O'Brien The Policy Press, 2008 | 29 | 2008 |
| New Zealand, new welfare N Lunt, M O'Brien, R Stephens Cengage Learning, 2008 | 29 | 2008 |
| Social work registration and professionalism: Social justice and poverty-fellow travellers or discarded passengers? M O'Brien Aotearoa New Zealand Social Work 25 (3), 50-59, 2013 | 25 | 2013 |
| Poverty, policy and the state: The changing face of social security M O'Brien Policy Press, 2008 | 25 | 2008 |
| Simulation-based research in emergency medicine in Canada: priorities and perspectives T Chaplin, B Thoma, A Petrosoniak, K Caners, T McColl, C Forristal, ... Canadian Journal of Emergency Medicine 22 (1), 103-111, 2020 | 18 | 2020 |
| Social work in context: Economics, organization, politics and ideology M O’Brien New Zealand social work: Contexts and practice, 44-54, 2001 | 17 | 2001 |
| The dynamics of debt for low income families: a report L Williams, M O'Brien New Zealand Council of Christian Social Services, 2003 | 13 | 2003 |
