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

The authors surveyed directors of residency training to determine the extent to which DSM-III has been integrated into American psychiatric residency training programs, how this has been accomplished, and the directors' assessments of certain effects of DSM-III on residency training. Ninety-seven percent (N = 208) responded to the questionnaire. Results indicated that DSM-III has had a major impact on residency training in the United States. Although the effects of DSM- III were judged to be largely positive--for example, offering a common language for diagnostic discussions--certain negative effects, such as promoting a mechanistic "cookbook" approach to assessing patients, were reported.