Behaviorism and Mental Health

Alternative perspective on psychiatry's so-called mental disorders | PHILIP HICKEY, PH.D.

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About Phil Hickey Ph.D

I am a licensed psychologist, presently retired. I have worked in clinical and managerial positions in the mental health, corrections, and addictions fields in the United States and England. My wife Nancy and I have been married since 1970 and have four grown children.

The Problem with DSM

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There’s an interesting article in the NY Times Sunday review.  You can see it here.  It was written by Sally Satel MD, a psychiatrist, currently a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. The article is called:  “Why the Fuss Over the DSM-5?”  Dr. Satel’s central point is that psychiatrists only treat symptoms anyway and… Continue Reading

Thomas Insel’s Paper – Still Under Attack

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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… Continue Reading

Dr. Insel Changes His Mind

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Well, as I guess everybody knows by now, Dr. Insel has changed his mind.  On April 29, he stated that the weakness of DSM “…is its lack of validity.”  He went on to express the view that his agency, NIMH, (the US government’s mental health research arm) “…cannot succeed if we use DSM categories…”  You… Continue Reading

Talk Therapy for Schizophrenia

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There’s an interesting article on Vermont’s Seven Days.  It’s called Burlington’s HowardCenter Tries a New Approach to Treating Mental Illness: More Talk, Fewer Meds.  You can see it here.  (Thanks to Steven Coles on Twitter for the link.) Apparently Vermont’s Department of Mental Health is promoting a “new” kind of treatment for psychosis:  talk therapy. … Continue Reading