It’s widely known that Thomas Insel, MD, Director of NIMH, recently proclaimed that the DSM’s diagnostic categories are invalid, and that this agency would no longer use these categories as the basis for research. But he went on to reaffirm his agency’s commitment to a biological model of “mental illness” and to funding research into biological causes of these problems. He has since issued a joint statement with Jeffrey Lieberman, President Elect of APA, which makes it clear that they’re still the best of friends, but he didn’t really recant his earlier statement.
Predictably his statement has attracted a good deal of criticism from our side of the debate. YoBlueMama2 has produced a very cogent and informative critique. You can see it here.
Here are some quotes:
“Apparently, Thomas Insel is unaware that in order to ethically determine the direction and the focus of scientific research requires an open mind; not a pre-determined agenda.”
“In effect, Insel is announcing all cognitive and emotional symptoms of distress, including undesirable, or disapproved of behavior are, caused by a yet to be identified, biological disorder or disease process—while simultaneously ignoring the overwhelming evidence of environmental causal factors such as sexual, physical, and emotional abuse and neglect, poverty, malnutrition, environmental violence, socio-economic-political status and intra- and inter-personal conflicts are highly correlated with, and known to exacerbate (if not cause) what Insel assumes are biological disorders…”
Please read and pass on.