Elainna Simpson

Dr. Lauritsen
Clinical Psychology
10/7/2020
Reflection 4
Diagnosis of mental health disorders has many strengths and weaknesses and it is

important to be aware of these as psychological researchers or clinicians. One of the biggest

advantages of the DSM is that it provides everyone with a standardized diagnosis that can be

transferred across clinicians. This is important because people may have to change treatment

facilities or therapists, it is beneficial that that person is always being diagnosed using the DSM

and they don’t have a misunderstanding of what they are diagnosed with. The standardization

of diagnosis is a strength because the DSM requirements for diagnosis are based on empirical

research and follow a medical model. Clients can then feel reassured that a clinician is not using

their own judgment and opinion on the disorder they diagnose, but rather a standard set of

requirements. Assigning a diagnosis can benefit the client by providing a sense of comfort that

what they are experiencing is not their fault. Having a set diagnosis can also help a client better

understand their behavior, or changes in behavior, and how that relates to the disorder they

have been diagnosed with. Some clients may not even be aware that some of their behaviors

are associated with a disorder and once it is brought to their attention they may be more willing

to address it and seek treatment. From a personal point of view, knowing that my behavior was

due to a disorder helped me feel as though it was not my fault and reassured me that other

people are feeling the same way. I would expect it to be beneficial to other clients as well. We

discussed in class that the DSM-5 has provided information to assist clinicians in performing a
differential diagnosis. I believe this is a strength since this allows clinicians a quick and reliable

way to ensure that someone is being diagnosed with the correct disorder. Confirming a correct

diagnosis is key in ensuring that a client gets the correct treatment. The DSM-5 also includes

more cultural information to ensure that clinicians are aware that culture can affect the way

that someone presents a disorder, again ensuring a correct diagnosis is made.

One of the major disadvantages of diagnosis, in general, is the impact of stigma. Once

you are assigned a diagnosis, that label may affect society’s or your view of your behavior. It

can then be difficult to determine if someone is accurately being diagnosed and treated. To me

the most impactful part of our class discussion was the idea of self-stigma. It made me question

my own views on my diagnosis and if that affects the way I behave or think. Self-stigma can be

very debilitating to someone especially if they are limiting themselves because of their

diagnosis. If a client has self-stigma they can also relay their symptoms differently to a clinician,

which can have detrimental consequences. Of course, there is also the impact of social stigma

and its effects, which is a disadvantage to diagnosing mental health disorders. Another major

issue in diagnosis is that it can be an oversimplification. Sometimes when a disorder is seen as a

standardized set of symptoms, people may not realize that each person is unique and may

experience disorders differently. Also, we cannot trivialize the different variables in people’s

lives that may affect behavior such as cultural trauma, lower SES, and/or abusive relationships.

Although it can be beneficial to have standardization, clinicians need to be aware of life

circumstances or unique traits and how that may play a role. A disadvantage of the DSM-5 was

not including a dimensional approach to diagnosis. I think this type of diagnosis would be

extremely helpful to people who are experiencing many symptoms of a disorder but not
enough to be diagnosed. Also, these people may need treatments, even if they are not as

extreme treatments as those for people completely diagnosed. Yet, I do feel that this

dimensional approach could also bring about some disadvantages if applied to all disorders. It

could cause overdiagnosis and overtreatment (and overmedication). Also, these people may

now experience stigma based on a label (despite being on the moderate side of that label) that

they never would have had to experience. Overall, I think there will always be strengths and

weaknesses to diagnosis, and psychology professionals need to be aware of these in research

and treatment.