title: Descriptive validity of DSM-III depressions.
abstract: There are five categories of psychiatric disorders in DSM-III that embrace depressive moods: adjustment disorder with depressed mood (group 1), bipolar depression (group 2), major depression (group 3), dysthymic disorder (group 4), and atypical depression (group 5). A large sample of patients seen in a metropolitan university psychiatric referral center, with these categories as primary diagnoses in axis I, constitute the subjects studied (N = 2988). The study includes a comparison of the cross-sectional clinical properties of these patients, including an inventory of psychopathological symptoms, entries in axes II to V (i.e., as described in DSM-III, plus a sixth axis measuring current adjustment) and immediate dispositions rendered by clinicians. This study addresses the descriptive validity of DSM-III diagnostic categories of depression. A clustering of depressions based on a continuum of severity is uncovered as well as unique features of certain subtypes that point to categorical aspects of DSM-III mood disorders. The nature and implication of these findings are discussed.
mesh_terms: D000275:Adjustment Disorders / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D000328:Adult; D000553:Ambulatory Care; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008370:Manuals as Topic; D008875:Middle Aged; D010554:Personality Disorders / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011594:Psychometrics; D012917:Social Adjustment