DSM-5: Do Psychologists Really Want an Alternative?

Abstract

Only two published studies, both from the early 1980s, have specifically examined psychologist attitudes toward the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). The current article rectifies this by presenting the results of a recent survey of attitudes toward the DSM-IV-TR and DSM-5. Though the DSM has changed over the years, psychologist attitudes toward it have remained remarkably consistent. Although more than 90% of psychologists report using the DSM, they are dissatisfied with numerous aspects of it and support developing alternatives to it-something that psychologists over 30 years ago supported, as well. The finding that almost all psychologists use the DSM despite serious concerns about it raises ethical issues because professionals are ethically bound to only use instruments in which they are scientifically confident.

DSM-5: Do Counselors Really Want an Alternative?

“…They worry that DSM diagnosis can overshadow treatment, distort perceptions of clients, and lead to stigmatizing labeling. They also support developing alternatives to diagnosis-even nondiagnosis, which psychologists do not (Raskin & Gayle, 2016). Counselors' mixed attitudes might reflect the various pressures the counseling profession currently faces.…”

What Might an Alternative to the DSM Suitable for Psychotherapists Look Like?

“…I recently coauthored a pair of studies on the latest version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ( DSM-5 ; American Psychiatric Association, 2013). One study looked at psychologist ( N = 104) attitudes toward the DSM (Raskin & Gayle, 2016); the other looked at counselor ( N = 121) attitudes (Gayle & Raskin, 2017). Though there were some interesting differences between psychologists and counselors—the most striking one being that counselors were generally optimistic about the DSM-5 (Gayle & Raskin, 2017) while psychologists were pessimistic (Raskin & Gayle, 2016)—there were also some noteworthy similarities.…”

“…One study looked at psychologist ( N = 104) attitudes toward the DSM (Raskin & Gayle, 2016); the other looked at counselor ( N = 121) attitudes (Gayle & Raskin, 2017). Though there were some interesting differences between psychologists and counselors—the most striking one being that counselors were generally optimistic about the DSM-5 (Gayle & Raskin, 2017) while psychologists were pessimistic (Raskin & Gayle, 2016)—there were also some noteworthy similarities. Both psychologists and counselors had concerns about the DSM-5 despite more than 90% of them saying they plan to use it, which is not surprising given its centrality in helping professionals get paid.…”

A broad ethics model for mental health practice

“…It is a checklist approach [22] replete with problems that raise ethical misgivings (e.g., over-diagnosis; issues with conceptual clarity and construct validity) [23]. In 2015, Raskin and Gayle [24] raised the issue that psychologists are very aware of the shortcomings and serious concerns of the DSM-5, and are bound ethically only to use instruments in which they have scientific confidence.…”