Clinical and Experimental Psychology

Prevalence of Psychological Disorders and its Diagnosis

Mehwish Hidayat^{* *}Correspondence: Mehwish Hidayat, Department of Clinical Psychology and Counselling, Banaras Hindu University (BHU), India, Email:

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Introduction

What is a psychiatric illness, exactly? How an individual knows if he/she have a psychiatric disorder? It's difficult to pinpoint precisely what constitutes a psychiatric condition, and meanings have evolved over time.

The first issue is that a mental health professional must first describe "disorder" precisely. How can you tell whether a person has a psychological problem or is unhealthy? What criteria do you use to determine what is normal and what is abnormal?

People who are deemed extremely talented or gifted in a particular field will be considered abnormal if disorder is described as anything that is outside of the statistical standard. Rather than focusing on acts that are objectively considered out of the ordinary, psychologists prefer to focus on the outcomes of those activities.

Disorders are more likely to be classified as maladaptive behaviors that trigger serious personal distress and disrupt everyday functioning.

What is a Psychological Disorder?

A psychological disability is a word that is often interchanged with words like mental disorder, psychiatric disorder, and mental illness. The “official” word is mental illness, as described in the DSM-5, the diagnostic manual of the American Psychiatric Association. A mental illness is described as:

"...a clinically relevant disruption in an individual's cognition, emotion control, or actions that represents a dysfunction in the psychological, biological, or developmental mechanism that underpins mental functioning. Mental illnesses are often linked to severe distress in social, educational, and other critical activities."

Expected reactions to a common stressor, such as the death of a loved one, are not considered mental illnesses, according to the DSM-5. The diagnostic manual also suggests that habits that are often thought to be at odds with social norms are not disorders unless they are the product of any dysfunction.

How are Psychological Disorders Diagnosed?

Both mental health professionals and mental health clients are concerned with classification and diagnosis. Although no single, authoritative description of mental illness exists, various classification and diagnostic criteria have emerged.’

Clinicians use the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders to assess if a series of symptoms or habits meets the requirements for a mental illness diagnosis. The World Health Organization's International Classification of Diseases is still widely used.

Purpose of Getting a Diagnosis

Although some people might be afraid of social stigma if they pursue a diagnosis, it is an important part of developing a successful treatment plan. A diagnosis is more than just putting a mark on a problem; it's also about finding remedies, therapies, and facts about it.

Psychological Disorder Prevalence

Psychological disorders are much more prevalent than commonly thought, according to new studies. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), about 26% of adults over the age of 18 in the United States suffer from a diagnosable mental illness each year.

According to the 1994 National Comorbidity Survey (NCS), 30% of respondents had signs of at least one psychiatric condition in the preceding year. According to the report, almost half of all adults will suffer from a mental illness at some stage in their lives.

Serious mental illness, according to the National Institute of Mental Health, is described as a mental, behavioral, or emotional condition diagnosed within the last year that meets DSM-IV diagnostic criteria. These illnesses must also cause significant impairment in functioning, limiting or interfering with one or more main life activities.

The National Comorbidity Survey was repeated in 2005, and 12-month prevalence rates among U.S. adults were found to be about 26%. The most common psychiatric disorders were anxiety disorders (18.1 percent), followed by mood disorders (9.5 percent), impulse control (8.9%), and substance-related disorders (3.8 percent).