Behaviorism and Mental Health

Alternative perspective on psychiatry's so-called mental disorders | PHILIP HICKEY, PH.D.

Homosexuality: The Mental Illness That Went Away

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Post edited and updated January 2, 2013, to reflect clarifications as a result of interactions with the many people who have left comments.  I thank them for their input. ******************** According to the American Psychiatric Association, until 1974 homosexuality was a mental illness.  Freud had alluded to homosexuality numerous times in his writings, and had… Continue Reading

Legacy of Abuse

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Psychiatry likes to present itself as a helping profession, but even a cursory look at its history suggests otherwise.  Here are some of the “treatments” that this pseudo-science has promoted for its pseudo-illnesses. STERILIZATION It is estimated that 65,000 people were sterilized in America under various eugenic statutes.  This practice, which was used between the… Continue Reading

A Blood Test for Depression

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Daniel Carlat in his blog post of August 15 mentions, and critiques, a so-called blood test for depression marketed (for $745) by Ridge Diagnostics. The essence of Dr. Carlat’s criticism is that the test is not predictive of depression, but merely enables one to tell (with some degree of accuracy) whether or not a person… Continue Reading

Behavior Therapy

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In a comment on my post on Natural Correction, Nanu Grewal raised a question concerning the addressing of behavioral problems.  This is a huge topic, and I feel the reply warrants a post.  There are others who could do a better job than me, but here’s my take on it. Traditional behavior therapy starts with assessment. … Continue Reading