Adjustment Disorder: Current Developments and Future Directions

• Published in: International journal of environmental research and public health Vol. 16; no. 14; p. 2537
• Main Authors: O'Donnell, Meaghan L, Agathos, James A, Metcalf, Olivia, Gibson, Kari, Lau, Winnie
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 16.07.2019; MDPI
• Subjects: Adjustment; Adjustment Disorders - diagnosis; Adjustment Disorders - therapy; Anxiety disorders; Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; Diagnostic systems; Health problems; Heredity; Humans; Impulsivity; International Classification of Diseases; Mental disorders; Phenomenology; Post traumatic stress disorder; Review; Risk analysis; Risk factors; Signs and symptoms; Statistics; Therapists; symptoms; treatment; ICD-11; DSM-5; nosology; review; course; diagnosis; adjustment disorder; trajectory
• ISSN: 1660-4601; 1661-7827; 1660-4601
• DOI: 10.3390/ijerph16142537

Despite its high prevalence in clinical and consultant liaison psychiatry populations, adjustment disorder research has traditionally been hindered by its lack of clear diagnostic criteria. However, with the greater diagnostic clarity provided in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - fifth edition (DSM-5) and the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 11th edition (ICD-11), adjustment disorder has been increasingly recognised as an area of research interest. This paper evaluates the commonalities and differences between the ICD-11 and DSM-5 concepts of adjustment disorder and reviews the current state of knowledge regarding its symptom profile, course, assessment, and treatment. In doing so, it identifies the gaps in our understanding of adjustment disorder and discusses future directions for research.