The myth of the organicity of mental disorders

Abstract

This paper, a response to psychologists seeking “prescription privileges” principles, addresses the myths and fallacies of the medical model in psychological disorders. The Council of Representatives of the American Psychological Association overwhelmingly voted for “prescription privileges” for psychologists during the APA convention in New York, August, 1995. The implication of such a decision is that organic factors play a role in functional mental disorders. Studies on the structure, chemical imbalances of the brain, and the genetics of these disorders, which have been carried out for almost 100 years since Kraepelin, are critically reviewed and the paucity and indeterminacy of the results are emphasized. It is felt that it would be a mistake for psychologists to adopt the medical model and the treatment of their patients with psychotropic drugs. Clinical psychologists with their scientific training should not get involved in an ideology and a mode of treatment with so many uncertainties, dangers and pitfalls. The perennial optimism of biological “breakthroughs,” with the encouragement and financial support of drug companies, and the disregard of psychosocial factor continue to persist in spite of so many failures.