Abstract
Validity and reliability are central methodological concepts in psychiatric nosology. However, the notion of validity raises considerable difficulties due to the nature of psychiatric disorders. In this chapter, we discuss the two concepts, their interrelation, and their shortcomings.
Good validity cannot be achieved without adequate reliability, but good reliability does not necessarily ensure validity. Improved reliability of the psychiatric diagnoses was paramount in the development of the operational diagnostic criteria, but in the attempt to achieve this goal, validity was sacrificed. Nonetheless, a striking improvement of the reliability of the clinical diagnoses after the introduction of the operational systems (DSM-III+ and ICD-10) remains to be seen.
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Jansson, L., Nordgaard, J. (2016). Validity and Reliability. In: The Psychiatric Interview for Differential Diagnosis. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-33249-9_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-33249-9_2
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