Psychiatric diagnosis

Abstract

Prior discussions of ethics in psychiatric diagnosis have focused on the development of classifications of psychopathology and the social features and implications of the use of psychiatric diagnostic categories. This chapter focuses instead on the ethics and values involved in the conduct of psychiatric diagnostic assessment ethics in the practice of diagnosing in mental health. The authors build an account of ethics of diagnostic practice using virtue epistemology theory, undergirded by Pellegrino’s account of medical morality as helping, healing, caring, and curing. The authors develop a set of diagnostic virtues (receptivity, empathy, inquisitiveness, self-knowledge, rigour, resolve, fallibilism, fecundity, practical wisdom, and faithfulness) and apply them to an illustrative case scenario.