An Analysis of Psychologist Postdoctoral Psychopharmacology
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Antioch University AURA - Antioch University Repository and Archive Student & Alumni Scholarship, including Dissertations & Theses Dissertations & Theses 2016 An Analysis of Psychologist Postdoctoral Psychopharmacology Training Materials for Critiques of Neurobiological Hypotheses of Depression's Etiology, Critical Analyses of the DSM's Rigor, and for Consumer/Survivor/Ex- Patient Content. Chris William Nicholas Rowe Antioch University Seattle Follow this and additional works at: http://aura.antioch.edu/etds Part of the Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons, Other Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences Commons, and the Psychology Commons Recommended Citation Rowe, Chris William Nicholas, "An Analysis of Psychologist Postdoctoral Psychopharmacology Training Materials for Critiques of Neurobiological Hypotheses of Depression's Etiology, Critical Analyses of the DSM's Rigor, and for Consumer/Survivor/Ex-Patient Content." (2016). Dissertations & Theses. 305. http://aura.antioch.edu/etds/305 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Student & Alumni Scholarship, including Dissertations & Theses at AURA - Antioch University Repository and Archive. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations & Theses by an authorized administrator of AURA - Antioch University Repository and Archive. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. AN ANALYSIS OF PSYCHOLOGIST POSTDOCTORAL PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY TRAINING MATERIALS FOR CRITIQUES OF NEUROBIOLOGICAL HYPOTHESES OF DEPRESSION’S ETIOLOGY, CRITICAL ANALYSES OF THE DSM’S RIGOR, AND FOR CONSUMER/SURVIVOR/EX-PATIENT CONTENT A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of Antioch University Seattle Seattle, WA In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Degree Doctor of Psychology By Christopher Rowe June 2016 AN ANALYSIS OF PSYCHOLOGIST POSTDOCTORAL PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY TRAINING MATERIALS FOR CRITIQUES OF NEUROBIOLOGICAL HYPOTHESES OF DEPRESSION’S ETIOLOGY, CRITICAL ANALYSES OF THE DSM’S RIGOR, AND FOR CONSUMER/SURVIVOR/EX-PATIENT CONTENT This dissertation, by Christopher Rowe, has been approved by the Committee Members signed below who recommend that it be accepted by the faculty of the Antioch University Seattle at Seattle, WA in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PSYCHOLOGY Dissertation Committee: ________________________ Alex Suarez, Ph.D. Chairperson ________________________ Pat Linn, Ph.D. ________________________ Paul Andrews, Ph.D. July 27, 2016 ii © Copyright by Christopher Rowe, 2016 All Rights Reserved iii 1 ABSTRACT AN ANALYSIS OF PSYCHOLOGIST POSTDOCTORAL PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY TRAINING MATERIALS FOR CRITIQUES OF NEUROBIOLOGICAL HYPOTHESES OF DEPRESSION’S ETIOLOGY, CRITICAL ANALYSES OF THE DSM’S RIGOR, AND FOR CONSUMER/SURVIVOR/EX-PATIENT CONTENT CHRISTOPHER ROWE Antioch University Seattle Seattle, WA There is widespread agreement that neurobiology plays a role in psychological distress and that psychiatric diagnosis and associated psychopharmacological interventions can be helpful. However, there are also unresolved issues surrounding the limits of empirical support for current diagnostic criteria, shortcomings in neurobiological explanations of psychopathology, and unanswered questions about the mechanism, safety, and efficacy of psychiatric medications. This has implications for treatment errors which can precipitate negative socio-economic and health consequences, particularly for vulnerable groups like the Consumer/Survivor/Ex-Patient (c/s/x) population. It is for these reasons that the training psychologists receive to prescribe should, in addition to integrating the critiques of conventional thinking about the etiology and diagnosis of mental distress, discuss the c/s/x movement. Extent research on psychologist postdoctoral psychopharmacology training has focused on legitimacy, safety, feasibility, and training considerations. This 2 study used content analysis and was the first to examine a selection of psychologist postdoctoral psychopharmacology training materials to understand the extent to which they were (a) integrating critiques of neurobiological hypotheses for depression’s etiology, (b) challenging the rigor of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) and, (c) informing students about the consumer/survivor/ex-patient movement. Results indicated that the examined body of materials did not consistently and comprehensively critique the majority of neurobiologically based etiological hypotheses for depression that were being disseminated. Next, challenges to the DSM’s empirical rigor within the examined materials primarily focused on construct validity versus inter- rater reliability, and without the provision of statistical analyses. Finally, the only substantial c/s/x content within the examined materials was limited to one book which students were not required to read. The limits of these findings and a variety of socio- cultural, ethical, legal, and professional advocacy considerations are discussed. The electronic version of this dissertation is at AURA: Antioch University Repository and Archive, http://aura.antioch.edu/ and OhioLINK ETD Center, https://etd.ohiolink.edu Acknowledgements Without the longstanding guidance of committee chair Alex Suarez and the contributions of committee members Pat Linn and Paul Andrews, this project would never have seen the light of day. Thank you. To Susan and my parents who have supported my academic efforts from the very beginning—thank you for your patience, feedback, and unwavering optimism. I’m grateful to Moti Nissani and the late Barry Beyerstein for mentoring curiosity and courage, and to David Cox and Alan Glaros for nurturing my capacity to work well independently. To Phil Cushman, for your attendance to critical thinking grounded in fairness and humility—I’m a better person and researcher for having been your student. Thank you Robert Whitaker, Grace Jackson, David Cohen, Scott Miller, Irving Kirsch, Marlin Hoover, Sean Ransom, Jim Gottstein, Laura Delano, Geoffrey Reaume, Barbara Bwolf, Stephen Stahl, Cinnamon VanPutte, Robert Menzies, Richard M. McFall, Phil Cushman, Mark Russell, Liang Tien, and the Psychologist Postdoctoral Psychopharmacology Program Directors who generously made time for me during this endeavor to dialogue, share materials, answer questions, and provide feedback. iv Table of Contents Page Acknowledgments.............................................................................................................. vi List of Tables ..................................................................................................................... xi Chapter I: Introduction .........................................................................................................1 Critical Review of the Literature ..................................................................................5 Curricula Research ........................................................................................................6 Neurobiological Etiology of Depression ....................................................................16 Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders .............................................31 C/s/x Movement ..........................................................................................................40 Research Question ......................................................................................................60 Chapter II: Method .............................................................................................................62 Operational Definitions ..............................................................................................62 Methodology ...............................................................................................................65 General Description of Content Analysis ...................................................................65 Method ........................................................................................................................67 Tabulation and Reporting ...........................................................................................75 Inter-Rater Reliability .................................................................................................76 Random Selection of the Second Coder’s Materials ..................................................80 Ethical Considerations ................................................................................................81 Chapter III: Results ............................................................................................................82 Findings ......................................................................................................................82 v Examined Psychologist Postdoctoral Psychopharmacology Training Program .........88 Syllabi .........................................................................................................................92 Non-Semester Project Books ......................................................................................97 Semester Project Books ............................................................................................117 Non-Textbook Readings ...........................................................................................142 Videos .......................................................................................................................158