Assessing Psychopathology

Much time and effort is spent in the diagnosis of psychopathology. Today, the DSM-IV and the ICD-10-CM, two separate but highly compatible classification systems, provide clinicians with a framework for diagnosis and subsequent treatment. Diagnosis attempts to answer three questions:

Does the client have a problem?
If so, what is it?
How should it be treated?

Once those questions are answered, therapy can begin.

URLs

DSM-IV Questions and Answers--FAQ, interm., long, links, graphics

From the American Psychiatric Association, page answers common questions about the DSM-IV, the most used classification system of mental health problems in use today. http://www.psych.org/clin_res/q_a.html

ICD-9-CM--index, basic, short, links, graphics

Page has links to information about International Classification of Diseases, 9th revision, clinical modification (ICD-9-CM), another widely used system for classifying mental health problems. http://dumccss.mc.duke.edu/standards/HL7/termcode/icd9cm.htm

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