Genetic strategies for clarifying a nosology of relational distress

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.; American Psychiatric Association, 1994) has made many strides but can be improved with the addition of relationship descriptions. Relational patterns may result from individual genetic risk factors and thus help to define disorders more clearly. Relationships may also mediate genetic risk factors and be useful in identifying the genetic vulnerability, or they may moderate underlying vulnerable genes so that they are less expressed. Key prototypic relationship patterns have inherent interest to humans, moderate numerous illnesses, and deserve attention in and of themselves. Similar to the use of genetic strategies in clarifying taxons of individual disorders, genetic strategies can help delineate patterns within these key relationships, their common origins, their common outcomes, and their distinctions from near-neighbor patterns.