What Is DSM IV?

DSM-IV is the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition. It contains diagnostic criteria for mental disorders and is the standard for diagnosis of mental disorders in the United States.

History

• Predecessors of the DSM were developed in the late 1800s to collect statistical information about mental disorders for the purpose of the US census. The American Psychiatric Association Committee on Nomenclature and Statistics published the first DSM in 1952.

Publication

• DSM-IV was published in 1994, with a revised edition (DSM-IV-TR) appearing in 2000. The next edition of the DSM (DSM-V) is scheduled for publication in 2012.

Contents

• DSM-IV contains a code and specific criteria for each mental disorder, as well as clear standards for determining a disorder's severity.

Categories

• The process for diagnosis in DSM-IV encompasses five different aspects that affect mental health: clinical syndromes, developmental disorders and personality disorders, physical conditions, severity of psychosocial stressors and level of functioning.

Limitations

• In the introduction to DSM-IV, its writers warn that the manual is for "clinical and research purposes," not for legal use. For example, a diagnosis of pedophilia does not absolve someone of legal responsibility for child molestation.