The revisions of both DSM-IV and ICD-10 have again focused the interest of the field of psychiatry and clinical psychology on the issue of nosology. This interest has been further heightened by a series of controversies associated with the development of DSM-5 including the fate of proposed revisions of the personality disorders, bereavement, and the autism spectrum. Major debate arose within the DSM process about the criteria for changing criteria, leading to the creation of first the Scientific Review Committee and then a series of other oversight committees which weighed in on the final debates on the most controversial proposed additions to DSM-5, providing important influences on the final decisions. Contained within these debates were a range of conceptual and philosophical issues. Some of these - such as the definition of mental disorder or the problems of psychiatric “epidemics” - have been with the field for a long time. Others - the concept of epistemic iteration as a framework for the introduction of nosologic change - are quite new. This book reviews issues within psychiatric nosology from clinical, historical and particularly philosophical perspectives. The book brings together a range of distinguished authors - including major psychiatric researchers, clinicians, historians and especially nosologists - including several leaders of the DSM-5 effort and the DSM Steering Committee. It also includes contributions from psychologists with a special interest in psychiatric nosology and philosophers with a wide range of orientations. The book is organized into four major sections: The first explores the nature of psychiatric illness and the way in which it is defined, including clinical and psychometric perspectives. The second section examines problems in the reification of psychiatric diagnostic criteria, the problem of psychiatric epidemics, and the nature and definition of individual symptoms. The third section explores the concept of epistemic iteration as a possible governing conceptual framework for the revision efforts for official psychiatric nosologies such as DSM and ICD and the problems of validation of psychiatric diagnoses. The book ends by exploring how we might move from the descriptive to the etiologic in psychiatric diagnoses, the nature of progress in psychiatric research, and the possible benefits of moving to a living document (or continuous improvement) model for psychiatric nosologic systems. The result is a book that captures the dynamic cross-disciplinary interactions that characterize the best work in the philosophy of psychiatry.

The essays in this book trace the origins of ongoing heated debates regarding trauma.

This book is a guide for psychiatrists struggling to incorporate transformational strategies into their clinical work. The book begins with an overview of the concept of critical psychiatry before focusing its analytic lens on the DSM diagnostic system, the influence of the pharmaceutical industry, the crucial distinction between drug-centered and disease-centered approaches to pharmacotherapy, the concept of “de-prescribing,” coercion in psychiatric practice, and a range of other issues that constitute the targets of contemporary critiques of psychiatric theory and practice. Written by experts in each topic, this is the first book to explicate what has come to be called critical psychiatry from an unbiased and clinically relevant perspective. Critical Psychiatry is an excellent, practical resource for clinicians seeking a solid foundation in the contemporary controversies within the field. General and forensic psychiatrists; family physicians, internists, and pediatricians who treat psychiatric patients; and mental health clinicians outside of medicine will all benefit from its conceptual insights and concrete advice.

The 2nd edition of Historical and Conceptual issues in Psychology offers a lively and engaging introduction to the main issues underlying the emergence and continuing evolution of psychology.

Conceptual Issues in Psychological Medicine is a collection of papers written by the celebrated psychiatrist, Michael Shepherd, who was one of the originators of psychiatric epidemiology in the UK and a leading social psychiatrist of his generation. He designed and implemented some of the first systematic studies into what are now widely recognised clinical syndromes. His extensive research experience and his advocacy of a scientific approach to social psychiatry form the basis of the essays contained in this book. Covering such issues as the development of research strategy and the difficulties involved in completing psychiatric studies, Shepherd's papers address many of the issues currently facing professionals in this field. He writes authoritatively and engagingly on clinical syndromes, the history of ideas and the use of the epidemiological approach in psychiatry. Conceptual Issues in Psychological Medicine stimulates and informs the reader in equal measure; it will be a welcome addition to the bookshelf of any practitioner of medicine.

Toward a Philosophical Approach to Psychiatry presents a collection of philosophical and historical papers authored by the psychiatrist Kenneth S. Kendler. Written primarily for psychiatrists, psychologists, and other scholars in the mental health professions, as a body of work, the papers offer an accessible distillation of many of the best current ideas from the philosophy of mind and the philosophy of science as applied to problems in psychiatric research and practice. The continuous thread running through these papers is a looking behind the common assumptions that nourish unrealistic expectations about what can be discovered about the nature of psychiatric disorders in the short-term––without abandoning a commitment to scientific progress in the long run. After a foreword by Robert Freedman, the book commences with Peter Zachar’s intellectual biography of Kendler followed by Kendler’s own introductions, providing an autobiographical and conceptual background for each paper. In addition to Kendler’s own writings, this collection includes many important collaborative efforts, including papers with John Campbell, Carl Craver, Kenneth Schaffner, Erik Engstrom, Rodrigo Munoz, George Murphy, and Peter Zachar.

This book brings together two bodies of knowledge - wellbeing and recovery. Wellbeing and 'positive' approaches are increasingly influencing many areas of society. Recovery in mental illness has a growing empirical evidence base. For the first time, overlaps and cross-fertilisation opportunities between the two bodies of knowledge are identified. International experts present innovations taking place within the mental health system, which include wellbeing-informed new therapies, e-health approaches and peer-led recovery communities. State-of-the-art applications of wellbeing to the wider community are also described, across education, employment, parenting and city planning. This book will be of interest to anyone connected with the mental health system, especially people using and working in services, and clinical and administrators leaders, and those interested in using research from the mental health system in the wider community.