Anxiety Disorders: Diagnosis

Diagnosing anxiety disorders is the process by which information about an individual’s psychological symptoms is gathered, conceptualized, and determined to fit a specific category of anxiety psychopathology. Assessment and diagnosis are necessary first steps that guide appropriate treatment selection as well as provide important prognostic information about the course and duration of disorders. Furthermore, objective diagnostic categories provide clinicians and researchers with consistent language to describe and study psychological experiences. Although several diagnostic classification systems exist around the globe, this entry focuses on the categories in the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), published by the American Psychiatric Association in May 2013. This entry discusses changes to diagnostic categories between the fourth and the fifth editions of the ...

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