Psychiatric diagnosis: what the recovery movement can offer the DSM-5 revision process

Many developments in the understanding of mental disorders are reflected in the ways in which the DSM has evolved through its different editions over the years. Within the context of the upcoming publishing of the DSM-5, and particularly in relation to people diagnosed with schizophrenia and psychosis, the purposes of the present paper are to: (a) briefly review the central developments of the DSM over time; (b) challenge the current role of the DSM as a classification manual in light of recent developments in psychiatric rehabilitation; (c) discuss the role of personal experience and subjectivity in the diagnostic process; and (d) offer suggestions as to how the DSM-5 can benefit from the recent tenets and findings of psychiatric rehabilitation. We claim that developments in the field of psychiatric rehabilitation, and its vision of recovery, do not yet find expression in the current DSM edition. We believe that it is important to update future versions of the manual with the findings and developments which have occurred in this field over the last several decades in order to improve diagnosis, treatment, and patient outcomes in mental health.