Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
n. 1. (DSM)
The psychiatric “Bible” for diagnosing mental
diseases (called disorders). It employs an easy-to-use checklist
system to determine which mental diseases a person has. It is so easy
to use even a child could make a diagnosis and prescribe a drug. Some critics
have expressed concern that it is too simplistic, relies on subjective judgments rather than objective
measures, labels normal human variations as disease, and almost always results in the administration of
powerful, addictive mind-altering drugs. However, critics generally concede that
the checklist approach is a considerable improvement over the “Pin the Tail on the Donkey” approach that
was used previously.
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