Qualitative vs. Quantitative Methods in Psychiatric Research: Updated

• Published in: Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) Vol. 2011; p. 23
• Main Authors: Srivastava, A Benjamin, Kobeissy, Firas H, Gold, Mark S
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 2019
• Subjects: Animals; Disease Susceptibility; Evaluation Studies as Topic; Genetic Predisposition to Disease; Genome-Wide Association Study; Humans; Mental Disorders - diagnosis; Mental Disorders - etiology; Mental Disorders - psychology; Mental Disorders - therapy; Psychiatry - methods; Psychiatry - standards; Psychiatry - statistics & numerical data; Psychiatry - trends; Qualitative Research; Translational Medical Research; Neuroimaging; Psychiatric illness; Genetics; History; Classification
• DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-9554-7_2

Since the incipiency of psychiatry as a medical specialty, the "holy grail" has been neuroscience-based diagnostic system and treatment strategies, but this lofty, yet necessary, goal has eluded the greatest minds for centuries. Now, with advances in molecular genetics and resting-state neuroimaging, neuroscience-based diagnosis and treatment are now more possible than ever. However, clinical symptomatology, longitudinal course, and delimitation of illnesses (i.e., phenotypic classification) remain indispensable for responsible, reproducible, and meaningful use of these new methodologies.