A report, published by the British Psychological Society (BPS), critiques the current state of knowledge of psychotic symptoms and the harmful implications of standard treatments, and makes suggestions for what needs to change.
One week following the government’s announcement of its review of mental health legislation, the British Psychological Society’s Division of Clinical Psychology published an open-access report challenging the existing framework conceptualizing “psychosis.” The authors attempt to dismantle the notion that schizophrenia is a “brain disease” which results in violent behaviors best regulated by medical intervention.
Aiming to impact service providers, users, and policy-makers, the report comprehensively reviews the current paradigm surrounding treatment for “psychosis,” as an updated version of a previous report, published in 2000. The authors include distinguished psychologists, representing eight universities and six NHS trusts, and people who identify with having experienced symptoms associated with “psychosis.” More than a quarter of the contributors come from the second group, referred to as “experts by experience.”