 |
| Research article summary (published 27 Feb 2002): |
|
Free Full Text! See links below |
Should the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria for conduct disorder consider social context?
Full Abstract
OBJECTIVE:
The text of the DSM-IV states that a diagnosis of conduct disorder should be made only if symptoms are caused by an internal psychological dysfunction and not if symptoms are a reaction to a negative environment. However, the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria are purely behavioral and ignore this exclusion. This study empirically evaluated which approach--the text's negative-environment exclusion or the purely behavioral criteria--is more consistent with clinicians' intuitive judgments about whether a disorder is present, whether professional help is needed, and whether the problem is likely to continue.
METHOD:
Clinically experienced psychology and social work graduate students were presented with three variations of vignettes describing youths whose behavior satisfied the DSM-IV criteria for conduct disorder. The three variations presented symptoms only, symptoms caused by internal dysfunction, and symptoms caused by reactions to a negative environment. The clinicians rated their level of agreement that the youth described in the vignette had a disorder, needed professional mental health help, and had a problem that was likely to continue into adulthood.
RESULTS:
Youths with symptoms caused by internal dysfunction were judged to have a disorder, and those with a reaction to a negative environment not to have a disorder. The difference was not explained by the clinicians' judgments of the youths' need for professional help or the expected duration of symptoms.
CONCLUSIONS:
The clinicians' judgments supported the validity of the DSM-IV's textual claim that a diagnosis of conduct disorder is valid only when symptoms are due to an internal dysfunction.
Learn Faster Today Improve your study skills
Author information
Author/s: Wakefield, Jerome C (JC); Pottick, Kathleen J (KJ); Kirk, Stuart A (SA);
Affiliation: School of Social Work and Institute of Health, Health Care Policy, and Aging Research, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, USA. jcw2(-atsign-)columbia.edu
Grants: MH-42917-02 (Agency:United States NIMH)
Journal and publication information
Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.
Journal: The American journal of psychiatry (Am J Psychiatry), published in United States. (Language: eng)
Reference: 2002-Mar; vol 159 (issue 3) : pp 380-6
Dates: Created 2002/02/28; Completed 2002/03/14; Revised 2007/11/15;
PMID: 11870000, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 11/6/2008)
Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.
Comments and Corrections
CommentIn: Am J Psychiatry. 2002 Mar;159(3):349-50. (PMID: 11869994)
External Links for this article (including full text providers, if available):
Click Electronic Full-text Provider Links to see options for finding the electronic full text links to this article. Note there may be a subscription or fee required for access to the full text. See our FAQ for information on finding FREE full text articles.
This article may also be located in paper journal collections available in many libraries. Use the Journal and Publication Information above to find the full article.
MeSH headings (categories)
This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.
|
|
Related articles
This article has not been indexed for related articles as yet, however you can still use the live related article search links below.
See a large map of 100+ related articles.