Several recent articles criticizing the new Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Third Edition (DSM-III) have renewed discussion of the issues of diagnostic systems in general. A jour-page questionnaire was sent to 601 psychologists in the National Register of Health Service Providers, 1978, to assess their use of and views on the current and projected DSM systems. Of those deliverable, 434 (73.4%) were returned. Results suggest that diagnosis by DSM-II is used mainly as required by agencies and insurance companies. Little else seems to influence the use of DSM-II. It was also found that the development of an alternative American Psychological Association manual is contingent on acceptance by third-party payers. These findings are discussed with regard to their impact on the future of diagnosis and psychology.The American Psychiatric Association has recently published the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Third Edition (DSM-III; 1980). The new document includes over 230 categories and describes over 100 new disorders. Moreover, it offers a multiaxial approach to diagnosis and is intended to provide more specific criteria for making a diagnosis than the previous diagnostic system of DSM-II (American Psychiatric Association, 1968). The release of DSM-III has renewed interest and controversy regarding diagnostic classification among psychologists
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