Bias in Psychiatric Diagnosis

Paula J. Caplan, Ph.D., is a clinical and research psychologist, Adjunct Professor (Research) at the Pembroke Center for Teaching and Research on Women at Brown University, and Adjunct Professor at Washington College of Law, American University, and author of ten previous books. Lisa Cosgrove, Ph.D. is a clinical and research psychologist and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Counseling and School Psychology at the University of Massachusetts at Boston.

Providing historical and sociological analyses, the contributors demonstrate bias in diagnoses, stemming from sexism, racism, ageism, homophobia/heterosexism, and classism. They argue that awareness of bias is important to any "helping" profession involved with diagnosis and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder, mental retardation, parental alienation syndrome, learning disabilities, sexual dysfunction, depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, false memory syndrome, agoraphobia, eating disorders, histrionic personality, and menstrual distress. Summing Up: Recommended.

• Chapter 1 ForewordChapter 2 Is This Really Necessary?Part 3 Part I The Creation of Bias in Psychiatric DiagnosisChapter 4 The Construction Of IllnessChapter 5 The Deep Structure of Bias in Psychiatric DiagnosisChapter 6 Creating Post-traumatic Stress Disorder: A Case Study of the History, Sociology, and Politics of Psychiatric ClassificationChapter 7 Abnormal Psychology Textbooks Exclude Feminist Criticism of the DSMPart 8 Part II Legal Implications of Bias in Psychiatric DiagnosisChapter 9 Psychiatric Diagnosis in the Legal SystemChapter 10 Bias and Subjectivity in Diagnosing Mental Retardation in Death Penalty CasesChapter 11 What Is It That's Being Called "Parental Alienation Syndrome"?Part 12 Part III Some Forms that Bias TakesChapter 13 The Intersection of Racism and Sexism in Psychiatric DiagnosisChapter 14 Clinical Cases and the Intersection of Sexism and RacismChapter 15 Should Racism Be Classified As a Mental Illness?Chapter 16 Ageism in Psychiatric DiagnosisChapter 17 The Psychiatric Policing of America's ChildrenChapter 18 Confusing Terms and False Dichotomies in Learning DisabilitiesChapter 19 Diagnosis of Low-Income WomenChapter 20 Seeking "Normal" Sexuality on a Complex MatrixChapter 21 Gender Bias and Sex Distribution of Mental Disorders in DSM-IV-TRChapter 22 Mislabeling Anxiety and Depression in Rural WomenPart 23 Part IV Specific LabelsChapter 24 Bias and SchizophreniaChapter 25 The Truth about "False Memory Syndrome"Chapter 26 Reclaiming the Meanings of "Self-esteem"Chapter 27 AgoraphobiaChapter 28 Depression in womenChapter 29 The "Eating-Disordered" PatientChapter 30 The Fine Line between Clinical and Subclinical AnorexiaChapter 31 Histrionic PersonalityChapter 32 Post-traumatic Stress DisorderChapter 33 Some Gender Biases in Diagnosing Traumatized WomenChapter 34 Medicalizing Menstrual DistressPart 35 Part V Moving AheadChapter 36 A New View of Women's Sexual ProblemsChapter 37 Resisting DiagnosisChapter 38 The Importance of Critical InquiryChapter 39 Some Future Contenders