The DSM

Question 1

What do clinicians use the DSM for?

Answer 1

Clinicians use the DSM to diagnose individuals with mental disorders as well as special educational needs, specifically looking at mental disorders

Question 2

By whom was the DSM developed? What edition is it in?

Answer 2

The DSM was developed by the American Psychiatric Association and is in its 5th edition

Question 3

What does Section 1 of the DSM contain?

Answer 3

Section 1 offers guidance on how to use the new systen

Question 4

What does Section 2 of the DSM contain?

Answer 4

Section 2 contains the disorders and is categorised according to our current understanding of underlying causes and similarities between symptoms

Question 5

What does Section 3 of the DSM contain?

Answer 5

Section 3 contains self-assessment tools and suggestions for new disorders which require further investigation. Additional information on the impact of culture on the presentation of symptoms and the way the are communicated is also included

Question 6

How do clinicians use the DSM to diagnose patients?

Answer 6

Clinicians may gather information about individuals through observation, but much of the diagnosis is based on unstructured interviews and structured interviews from the interview schedules available based on the symptoms list, such as the Beck Depression Inventory (gathering qualitative and quantitative data therefore). Clinicians attempt to rule out disorders that don’t match the individual’s symptoms