Understanding the DSM-5: stasis and change

Rachel Valerie Cooper

doi:10.1177/0957154X17741783

Understanding the DSM-5: stasis and change

Rachel Valerie Cooper

Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review

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1258 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

This paper aims to understand the DSM-5 through situating it within the context of the historical development of the DSM series. When one looks at the sets of diagnostic criteria, the DSM-5 is strikingly similar to the DSM-IV. I argue that at this level the DSM has become ‘locked-in’ and difficult to change. At the same time, at the structural, or conceptual, level there have been radical changes, for example, in the definition of ‘mental disorder’, the role of theory and of values, and in the abandonment of multiaxial approach to diagnosis. The way that the DSM-5 was constructed means that the overall conceptual framework of the classification only barely constrains the sets of diagnostic criteria that it contains.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	49-65
Number of pages	17
Journal	History of Psychiatry
Volume	29
Issue number	1
Early online date	29/11/2017
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1177/0957154X17741783
Publication status	Published - 1/03/2018

User-defined Keywords

Conceptual framework
DSM-III
DSM-IV
DSM-5
lock-in

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10.1177/0957154X17741783

historypsychiatrystasisandchange
The final, definitive version of this article has been published in the Journal, History of Psychiatry, 29 (1), 2018, © SAGE Publications Ltd, 2018 by SAGE Publications Ltd at the History of Psychiatry page: http://journals.sagepub.com/home/hpy on SAGE Journals Online: http://journals.sagepub.com/
Accepted author manuscript, 374 KBLicence: CC BY-NC-ND

http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0957154X17741783

Evaluating the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - BA Mid-Career Fellowship
Cooper, R. (Principal Investigator)
The British Academy
1/01/13 → 31/12/13
Project: Research

Cite this

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title = "Understanding the DSM-5: stasis and change",

abstract = "This paper aims to understand the DSM-5 through situating it within the context of the historical development of the DSM series. When one looks at the sets of diagnostic criteria, the DSM-5 is strikingly similar to the DSM-IV. I argue that at this level the DSM has become {\textquoteleft}locked-in{\textquoteright} and difficult to change. At the same time, at the structural, or conceptual, level there have been radical changes, for example, in the definition of {\textquoteleft}mental disorder{\textquoteright}, the role of theory and of values, and in the abandonment of multiaxial approach to diagnosis. The way that the DSM-5 was constructed means that the overall conceptual framework of the classification only barely constrains the sets of diagnostic criteria that it contains.",

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Understanding the DSM-5: stasis and change

Abstract

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Projects

Evaluating the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - BA Mid-Career Fellowship

Cite this