Assignment 3, Dsm
07/01/2011
WHAT IS A MENTAL DISORDER? GETTING UNDER THE SKIN OF THE DSM
Today’s Learning Outcomes
In this session, you will learn… How the DSM originated Why the DSM is so influential How the contents of the DSM are decided How the DSM finds a cut-off between normality and disorder The pros and cons of the DSM system
The answer to the question ‘what is a mental disorder?’ has two parts:
1. Which kinds of behaviour / experiences /
beliefs get categorised as kinds of mental disorder?
2. Where is the cut-off line between normal
and abnormal in relation to these kinds of behaviours? Answer: the DSM and the ICD decide
1
07/01/2011
DSM and ICD
The Creation of DSM-III in 1980
A reaction to a ‘crisis’ of confidence in psychiatry in 1970s. What caused this crisis? DSM-III project led by Robert Spitzer Aims were:
To legitimize the objective nature of mental illness to remove the ‘reliability problem’: to get all professionals working according to same diagnostic criteria To use a theory-neutral checklist system
The Power of the DSM today
Used by doctors and psychiatrists in aiding drug prescription Used by doctors and patients making insurance or disability claims Used by researchers as categorising tool for studying causes and correlates of mental disorder Used by criminal justice system to inform policy, ‘insanity’ pleas, prisoner classification and mental health treatment in prisons In summary, the DSM shapes how society sees mental illness and abnormality
2
07/01/2011
PART 1 WHICH KINDS OF BEHAVIOUR / EXPERIENCES / BELIEFS GET CATEGORISED IN THE DSM?
The original goal of the DSM:
To comprehensively categorise all those kinds of behaviours and emotional problems that traditionally led to seeing a psychiatrist
“The two systems in greatest use today, ICD-9 and DSM-III, have as their goal complete coverage of the population of persons who present to psychiatrists.” (Robins and Helzer, 1986)
Who ends up seeing a
WHAT IS A MENTAL DISORDER? GETTING UNDER THE SKIN OF THE DSM
Today’s Learning Outcomes
In this session, you will learn… How the DSM originated Why the DSM is so influential How the contents of the DSM are decided How the DSM finds a cut-off between normality and disorder The pros and cons of the DSM system
The answer to the question ‘what is a mental disorder?’ has two parts:
1. Which kinds of behaviour / experiences /
beliefs get categorised as kinds of mental disorder?
2. Where is the cut-off line between normal
and abnormal in relation to these kinds of behaviours? Answer: the DSM and the ICD decide
1
07/01/2011
DSM and ICD
The Creation of DSM-III in 1980
A reaction to a ‘crisis’ of confidence in psychiatry in 1970s. What caused this crisis? DSM-III project led by Robert Spitzer Aims were:
To legitimize the objective nature of mental illness to remove the ‘reliability problem’: to get all professionals working according to same diagnostic criteria To use a theory-neutral checklist system
The Power of the DSM today
Used by doctors and psychiatrists in aiding drug prescription Used by doctors and patients making insurance or disability claims Used by researchers as categorising tool for studying causes and correlates of mental disorder Used by criminal justice system to inform policy, ‘insanity’ pleas, prisoner classification and mental health treatment in prisons In summary, the DSM shapes how society sees mental illness and abnormality
2
07/01/2011
PART 1 WHICH KINDS OF BEHAVIOUR / EXPERIENCES / BELIEFS GET CATEGORISED IN THE DSM?
The original goal of the DSM:
To comprehensively categorise all those kinds of behaviours and emotional problems that traditionally led to seeing a psychiatrist
“The two systems in greatest use today, ICD-9 and DSM-III, have as their goal complete coverage of the population of persons who present to psychiatrists.” (Robins and Helzer, 1986)
Who ends up seeing a