• Int J Psychol · Jan 2013

    Psychologists' perspectives on the diagnostic classification of mental disorders: results from the WHO-IUPsyS Global Survey.

    • Spencer C Evans, Geoffrey M Reed, Michael C Roberts, Patricia Esparza, Ann D Watts, João Mendonça Correia, Pierre Ritchie, Mario Maj, and Shekhar Saxena.
    • Clinical Child Psychology Program, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA. spencerevans@ku.edu
    • Int J Psychol. 2013 Jan 1; 48 (3): 177-93.

    AbstractThis study examined psychologists' views and practices regarding diagnostic classification systems for mental and behavioral disorders so as to inform the development of the ICD-11 by the World Health Organization (WHO). WHO and the International Union of Psychological Science (IUPsyS) conducted a multilingual survey of 2155 psychologists from 23 countries, recruited through their national psychological associations. Sixty percent of global psychologists routinely used a formal classification system, with ICD-10 used most frequently by 51% and DSM-IV by 44%. Psychologists viewed informing treatment decisions and facilitating communication as the most important purposes of classification, and preferred flexible diagnostic guidelines to strict criteria. Clinicians favorably evaluated most diagnostic categories, but identified a number of problematic diagnoses. Substantial percentages reported problems with crosscultural applicability and cultural bias, especially among psychologists outside the USA and Europe. Findings underscore the priority of clinical utility and professional and cultural differences in international psychology. Implications for ICD-11 development and dissemination are discussed.

      Pubmed     Full text   Copy Citation     Plaintext  

      Add institutional full text...

    Notes

     
    Knowledge, pearl, summary or comment to share?
    300 characters remaining
    help        

    hide…

What will the 'Medical Journal of You' look like?

Start your free 21 day trial now.

We guarantee your privacy. Your email address will not be shared.