DSM-III in residency training: results of a Canadian survey

The authors surveyed directors of residency training as well as residents across Canada to determine the extent to which DSM-III has been incorporated into the Canadian psychiatric residency training programs, how this has been accomplished, and the respondents' assessment of certain effects of DSM-III on residency training. This study is a replication of an earlier study done by another team in the United States. Our study indicates that, in most cases, the attitude towards DSM-III was positive: 100% of respondents described the system as useful or somewhat useful in the training settings. The most frequently selected positive features were its value as a common language, an aid in differential diagnosis, its empirical approach and specificity or clarity of the criteria. The criticisms frequently centred on the DSM-III's potential to induce a false impression of all encompassing theoretical knowledge, to be misused in a mechanistic manner as a "cookbook", and on the DSM-III's inadequacy with some patients (for example, children, neurotic disorders, and personality disorders).