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CLASSIFICATION SYSTEMS

Advantages and Disadvantages of Classification Systems

Faculty of Psychology, Universidad de La Sabana, Colombia.

Child and adolescent psychopathology

María Belén García

February, 2021
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CLASSIFICATION SYSTEMS

Advantages and Disadvantages of Classification Systems

Mental disorders are behavioral patterns of clinical significance that arise in association

with a person's emotional or physical distress, disability, impairment in daily functioning, loss of

freedom, or even a significantly increased risk of involvement in counterproductive behaviors or

premature death (Echeburúa, Salaberría & Cruz Sáez, 2014). Psychopathology is the branch of

Psychiatry that deals with the classification and characterization of the different symptoms and

mental illnesses, and therefore represents the part of Psychiatry that deals with diagnosis, i.e., it

covers not only diagnosis, but also prevention and treatment of illnesses (González, 2003).It

therefore represents the part of psychiatry that deals with diagnosis, i.e., it covers not only the

diagnosis, but also the prevention and treatment of diseases (González, 2003).

However, during the first half of the 20th century, the problems of mental disorders grew,

due to the great social crises linked to the great wars of this period, so that it was increasingly

necessary to have a taxonomy that would make it possible to order the information and empirical

observation, just as the need for statistics increased, to know the situation of social mental health,

and the repercussion of the war effort on the state of mind of combatants and citizens, finally

alluding to the possible systematic ordering of social mental disorders.The need to know the

situation of social mental health, and the repercussion of the war effort on the state of mind of

combatants and citizens, finally alluding to the possible systematic ordering of data in cognitive

categories, which led to a fundamental fact in the development of knowledge about mental

illness (García, 2021).

Based on the above, according to De la fuente (2017) "Diagnosis is the process of

identifying a disease by its signs and symptoms, but it is also the decision reached in this

process". In general, there are two different models that allow making the diagnosis of any
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CLASSIFICATION SYSTEMS

disease: symptomatic: the disease is diagnosed based on symptoms and etiological: the diagnosis

is made based on the cause of the disease (De la fuente, 2017).

Likewise, the classification system presents certain advantages that had a positive impact

on psychopathology, which are the existence of a classificatory manual that develops conceptual

clarity and consolidation of a standardized scientific language through which to refer to mental

disorders (García, 2021). The latest edition, DSM-5, published in 2013, provides a classification

system that attempts to separate mental illnesses into diagnostic categories, based on the

description of symptoms (i.e., what people say and do as a reflection of what they think and feel)

and on the evolution of the illness (Garcia, 2021).The latest edition, DSM-5, published in 2013,

provides a classification system that attempts to separate mental illnesses into diagnostic

categories, based on the description of symptoms (i.e., what people say and do as a reflection of

what they think and feel) and on the evolution of the disease (Garcia, 2021). Any diagnostic

classification system serves three general objectives, as well as many specific clinical,

administrative, legal and research objectives. Among the general objectives are to 1) provide a

language with which all mental health professionals can communicate; 2) define the

characteristics of the disorder and have an understanding of how it differs from other similar

disorders in order to study the natural history of the disorder and develop effective treatment; 3)

develop an understanding of the causes of different mental disorders (De la fuente, 2017). The

classification system provides diagnostic reliability, as it is essentially based on somatic criteria

as there is a broad description of the clinical concept underlying the title of each disorder (De la

fuente, 2017). Finally, the classification system allows to carry out a process which consists of a

background that can be of a psychological nature (conscious or unconscious mental processes),

biological processes and therefore organic or somatic, or directly related to aspects of

development related to the ontogeny of the individual and to be able to treat it (Garcia, 2021).

However, the classification system also has unfavorable aspects that are highly criticized,

which are that the classification system speaks of mental disorders, not mental illnesses, because

the concept of illness implies an etiology, a grouping of symptoms, a course and a prognosis, as

well as a certain response to treatment; however, today it is not possible to determine the

etiologic factors of the disease, but it is possible to determine the etiologic and prognostic

factors.This is because the concept of illness implies an etiology, a grouping of symptoms, a

course and a prognosis, as well as a certain response to treatment; however, today it is not

possible to determine the etiological factors or the underlying pathological processes.However,

today it is not possible to determine the etiological factors or the underlying pathological

processes for most clinical pictures, so it is decided to limit ourselves to describing in the most

detailed way possible the updated diagnostic criteria of mental disorders so that they can be

identified by therapists and communicated to professionals with a common language (Echeburúa,

Salaberría & Cruz, 2014). According to Echeburúa, Salaberría & Cruz (2014) "Even though the

DSM is the main reference in world mental health, over the years and after successive revisions,

its validity has begun to be seriously questioned, based mainly on consensus rather than on

scientific evidence, i.e., the DSM-5 is linked to the categorical medical model of disease, which,

in the case of mental disorders, has many limitations in clinical practice".In other words, the

DSM-5 is based on the categorical medical model of disease, which, in the case of mental

disorders, has many limitations in clinical practice". The almost non-existence of patients with a

single pure diagnosis (comorbidity is the norm, not the exception), the use of unspecified

diagnoses, which may be the most frequent in areas such as eating disorders, personality
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CLASSIFICATION SYSTEMS

disorders or autism spectrum disorders, or the lack of specific treatments for many diagnostic

categories reveals the inaccuracies of this classification system (Echeburúa, E., et al.reas such as

eating disorders, personality disorders or autism spectrum disorders, or the lack of specific

treatments for many diagnostic categories reveals the inaccuracies of this classificatory system

(Echeburúa, Salaberría & Cruz, 2014). There are new disorders diagnosed in the DSM-5 that do

not have strong empirical support and may involve medicalization of normal behaviors, with the

consequent risk of unnecessary medication: (a) disruptive and dysregulated mood disorder; (b)

social-pragmatic communication disorder; (c) bereavement as a possible major depressive

disorder; (d) mild neurocognitive disorder, which may reflect memory loss; (e) the extension of

the diagnosis of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder; and (f) the extension of the diagnosis of

attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.(e) binge eating disorder, the definition of which may be

imprecise ("overeating 12 times within 3 months"), and (f) the discomfort and discomfort of

eating disorders, which may be due to the fact that the patient may not be able to eat enough food

in the same period of time.) and f) the periodic discomfort and emotional distress of menstruation

as menstrual dysphoric disorder (Echeburúa, Salaberría & Cruz, 2014). Finally, an important

conflict is the essentially multifactorial character of the etiology of mental disorders, which is

probably much more marked than in most other diseases.Few branches of medicine present such

an equal intervention of biological, psychological and social factors in the origin and evolution

of the disease as Psychiatry (De la fuente, 2017).

References

From the source, J.R. (2017). Mental health and psychological medicine. McGraw-Hill
Interamericana de España S.L.
Echeburúa, E., Salaberría, K & Cruz Sáez, M. (2014). Contributions and limitations of the DSM-
5 from Clinical Psychology. Psychological Therapy, 32(1), 15-27.
http://dx.doi.org/10.4067/S0718-48082014000100007
Garcia, M.B. (2021). Lecture notes on child and adolescent psychopathology.