Chapter 1

1. L.J. Davis and Paula J. Caplan contend that the definition of what is considered a mental illness is too broad because it categorizes such behaviors as shyness, insomnia, sleepwalking, and premenstrual syndrome as mental disorders. The American Psychiatric Association maintains, however, that simply listing a disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders does not imply that the condition meets the legal criteria for mental illness. Explain why the APA might list such behaviors in the DSM if they are not mental diseases. What conditions do you think qualify as mental illnesses?
2. According to Hillary Rodham Clinton and Steven Hyman, mental illnesses are diseases of the brain and should be treated the same as other medical disorders. Martin Bobgan and Deidre Bobgan disagree, arguing that mental illness is not a disease because the mind is not a physical organ and...