Since its first inclusion in the DSM in 1980 (DSM-III) as 'multiple personality disorder', Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) has been controversial. Is it real? And if so, how can that be? This article gives a good, albeit long, historical and theoretical overview of the disorder: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6296396/. Read/skim that article for context, and then spend your time with this article recently published in Psychology Today:

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/psych-unseen/202302/the-debate-over-whether-dissociative-identity-disorder-is-real

I highly encourage you to check out credible online sources for this debate. Here are a few to get you started:

• https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/the-british-journal-of-psychiatry/article/dissociative-identity-disorder-out-of-the-shadows-at-last/8E2884FA8669A9A64790E5C47AD72DC7
• https://did-research.org/controversy/
• https://psychcentral.com/disorders/dispelling-myths-about-dissociative-identity-disorder#its-a-personality-disorder

 

Poll Options

A. DID likely does not exist, and this is why individuals may present with symptoms..

B. DID exists, and this is how it makes sense as a disorder.

Answer rating: 100% (QA)

It is true that DID originally known as multiple personality disorder has generated debate in the psychiatric and psychological communities There are ... View the full answer