The ACBS Board of Directors has expressed serious concern regarding the content of the future Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fifth Edition, (DSM-5), which is currently under development. The DSM serves as an important component of the research, education, and practice of most licensed psychologists in the United States.
“We find that many of the proposed changes to the DSM are inconsistent with Contextual Behavioral Science and practice,” explains Patty Bach, ACBS President. “The proposed version minimizes the role of non-medical (i.e., environmental) variables in the etiology and course of psychopathology. What’s more, the new diagnoses and revisions to existing ones serve to pathologize normal human experiences such as bereavement."
Following a vote by the Board of Directors, ACBS has signed on to an open letter addressed to the DSM-5 Task Force and the American Psychiatric Association. The letter can be found here. It outlines many specific concerns, and offers suggestions for change.
By signing this letter, ACBS has joined with many sections of the American Psychological Association, the British Psychological Society, the Association for Women in Psychology, as well as many other notable organizations.
Learn more about this issue, and co-sign the letter here.