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The first edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) was released in 1952. At the time, it was the definitive text on mental disorders, and it still is. The first edition included 128 disorders, a number that is dwarfed in comparison to later versions of the DSM. In 2013, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) released the fifth and latest edition (although some information has been added in updates since then). It included many more disorders than its predecessors. The DSM-V outlines and discusses diagnostic practices for a grand total of 357 disorders, and that does not include a set of potential disorders that are labeled “conditions for further study.”

The content of the DSM is determined by hundreds of researchers, editors, and administrators who evaluate emerging psychopathology. In the past, decisions have been made by around 20 committees, all of which are appointed by the APA. According to Slate, each of these groups focuses on a specific category of mental illness, such as mood disorders or anxiety disorders. The proposed disorders can be introduced through recent research, and others are taken from an appendix from the current edition of the DSM that contains the “conditions for further study” mentioned above.

In order to be included in the DSM, a new disorder has to meet a carefully defined list of criteria. Symptoms must be considered severe enough to “cause impairment or distress” and be different enough from categories that are already included. False positives have to be ruled out as well. To assess such disorders, committees review research that has been conducted to ensure the quantity and quality of supporting evidence, Slate reports. When there are questionable aspects to the research, the APA can commission field trials. Then, if the disorder is recommended, experts draft an explanation that is evaluated by mental health professionals and even the general public. The decision is ultimately made by a DSM task force who oversees revisions.

Further Study in the DSM-V

What about the conditions that do not make it into the DSM as official disorders? Those are usually included in the category of “conditions for further study” and kept on a waiting list of sorts. The appendix of the DSM-V includes a core of 8 conditions that require further study. These conditions rely on “proposed criteria [that are] presented for conditions on which future research is encouraged.” While they may become full-fledged disorders in future editions of the DSM, for now they are in a separate category, one that outlines diagnostic features, prevalence, risk, and more. The following conditions are those included in the DSM as unofficial diagnoses.

All information is taken from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-V. These proposed criteria sets are not intended for clinical use; only the criteria sets and disorders in Section II of DSM-V are officially recognized and can be used for clinical purposes.

Attenuated Psychosis Syndrome

This condition is psychosis-like, but below the threshold for a full psychotic disorder. Compared with psychotic disorders, the symptoms are less severe and more transient.

• Diagnostic features: Attenuated delusions; attenuated hallucinations; disorganized communications; distressed and impaired performance; relatively maintained insight
• Associated features: Magical thinking; perceptual aberrations; difficulty in concentration; excessive suspiciousness; anxiety; social withdrawal; disruption in sleep-wake cycle
• Prevalence: Unknown, with a slight male preponderance
• Development and course: Mid-to-late adolescence or early adulthood
• Risk and prognostic factors: Temperamental; genetic and physiological (family history)
• Functional consequences: Modest-to-moderate impairment in social and role functioning; substantial improvement over time; many continue to have mild symptoms and impairment, others have full recovery
• Differential diagnosis: Brief psychotic disorder; schizotypal personality disorder; depressive or bipolar disorders; anxiety disorders; bipolar II disorder; borderline personality disorder; adjustment reaction of adolescence; extreme end of perceptual aberration and magical thinking in the non-ill population; substance/medication-induced psychotic disorder; attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
• Comorbidity: Individuals often experience anxiety and/or depression; may progress to another diagnosis, including anxiety, depressive, bipolar, and personality disorders

Depressive Episodes With Short-Duration Hypomania

This condition features episodes that are of sufficient intensity to be categorized as hypomanic but do not meet the four-day duration requirement.

• Diagnostic features: At least one major depressive episode; two episodes of hypomania of two to three days in duration 
• Associated features: Both short-term hypomania and a major depressive episode; substance use disorders; family history of bipolar disorder
• Prevalence: Unclear; suggested 2.8 percent of the population; may be more common in females
• Development and course: Not fully determined
• Risk and prognostic factors: Genetic; physiological; family history of mania
• Functional consequences: Not fully determined
• Differential diagnosis: Bipolar II disorder; major depressive disorder; major depressive disorder with mixed features; bipolar I disorder; cyclothymic disorder
• Comorbidity: Short-duration hypomania

Persistent Complex Bereavement Disorder

This condition is only diagnosed if at least 12 months (six months in children) have elapsed since the death of someone with whom the bereaved had a close relationship. This time frame discriminates normal grief from persistent grief.

• Diagnostic features: Persistent yearning/longing for the deceased; intense sorrow; frequent crying; preoccupation with the deceased; preoccupation with the manner in which the person died; difficulty in accepting the individual has died; disbelief that the individual has died; distressing memories of the deceased; anger over the loss; maladaptive appraisals about oneself in relation to the deceased or the death; excessive avoidance of reminders of the loss; desire to die; distrust of others; isolation; diminished sense of identity; difficulty engaging
• Associated features: Some individuals experience hallucinations of the deceased (auditory or visual) in which they temporarily perceive the deceased’s presence; diverse somatic complaints including those experienced by the deceased
• Prevalence: Approximately 2.4-4.8 percent; more prevalent in females
• Development and course: Can occur at any age, beginning after the age of 1 year; symptoms usually begin within the initial months, though there may be a delay; response is different in children than in adults
• Risk and prognostic factors: Environmental (increased dependence on the deceased person prior to death, death of a child); genetic and psychological (heightened risk if the bereaved individual is female)
• Functional consequences: Deficits in work and social functioning; harmful health behaviors; marked increase in risk for serious medical conditions; reduced quality of life
• Differential diagnosis: Normal grief; depressive disorders; post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD); separation anxiety disorder
• Comorbidity: Major depressive disorder; PTSD; substance use disorders

Neurobehavioral Disorder Associated With Prenatal Alcohol Exposure

This condition is a new clarifying term, intended to encompass the full range of developmental disabilities associated with exposure to alcohol in utero.

• Diagnostic features: Impairment in neurocognitive, behavioral and adaptive functioning; a clinical diagnosis of fetal alcohol syndrome; marked impairment in global intellectual performance or neurocognitive impairment in any of the following areas: executive functioning, learning, memory, and/or visual-spatial reasoning; impairments in self-regulation
• Associated features: Vary depending on age, degree of alcohol exposure, and the individual’s environment; ongoing parental alcohol or substance misuse, parental mental illness, exposure to domestic or community violence, neglect or abuse, disrupted caregiving relationships, multiple out-of-home placements, lack of continuity in medical or mental health care
• Prevalence: Unknown; estimated prevalence rates of clinical conditions associated with prenatal alcohol exposure are 2-5 percent in the United States
• Development and course: Varies according to developmental age; about one-half of young children prenatally exposed to alcohol show marked development delay in the first three years of life; other children may not exhibit signs until preschool or school age
• Risk and prognostic factors: Suicide is a high-risk outcome; rates increase significantly in late adolescence and early adulthood
• Functional consequences: Decrements in adaptive behavior; maladaptive behavior with lifelong consequences; disrupted school experiences; poor employment records; trouble with the law; confinement; dependent living conditions
• Differential diagnosis: Disorders that are attributable to the physiological effects associated with postnatal use of a substance, another medical condition or environmental neglect; genetic and teratogenic conditions
• Comorbidity: Mental health problems in more than 90 percent of individuals; ADHD; oppositional defiant disorder and conduct disorder; mood symptoms; increased risk for later tobacco, alcohol, and other substance abuse

Suicidal Behavior Disorder

Suicidal behavior is often categorized in terms of violence of the method. Generally, overdoses with legal or illegal substances are considered nonviolent in method, whereas jumping, gunshot wounds, and other methods are considered violent. Another dimension is medical consequences of this behavior, with high-lethality attempts being defined as those requiring medical hospitalization. An additional dimension considered includes the degree of planning versus impulsivity.

• Diagnostic features: A suicide attempt; early remission if the suicidal behavior occurred 12-24 months prior to evaluation; high risk for further suicide attempts and death in the 24 months after the attempt
• Associated features: Not fully determined
• Prevalence: Not fully determined
• Development and course: Can occur at any time in the life span; rarely seen in children under the age of five
• Risk and prognostic factors: Approximately 25-30 percent of persons will make more attempts; significant variability in frequency, method, and lethality of attempts
• Functional consequences: Medical conditions such as lacerations, skeletal trauma, cardiopulmonary instability; hepatic failure
• Differential diagnosis: Not fully determined
• Comorbidity: A variety of mental disorders, such as bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, anxiety disorders, borderline personality disorder, antisocial personality disorder, eating disorders, and adjustment disorders; rarely manifested by individuals with no discernible pathology

Nonsuicidal Self-Injury

The essential feature of nonsuicidal self-injury is that the individual repeatedly inflicts shallow, yet painful injuries to the surface of his or her body.

• Diagnostic features: Most commonly, the purpose is to reduce negative emotions, such as tension, anxiety, and self-reproach, or to resolve an interpersonal difficulty; in some cases, the injury is conceived of as a deserved self-punishment
• Associated features: Associated with a sense of urgency and craving; behavioral pattern resembling addiction; injury most often inflicted with a sharp object; common areas of injury include the frontal area of the thighs and the dorsal side of the forearm
• Prevalence: Unclear, due to lack of self-reporting
• Development and course: Often starts in early teen years; can continue for many years; hospital admission reaches a peak at 20-29 years of age and then declines
• Risk and prognostic factors: Male and female rates are closer to each other than in suicidal behavior disorder; two theories of pathology exist, based on learning theory (positive or negative reinforcement) and self-punishment
• Functional consequences: Blood-borne disease transmission
• Differential diagnosis: Borderline personality disorder; suicidal behavior disorder; trichotillomania; stereotypic self-injury; excoriation
• Comorbidity: Not fully determined

Caffeine Use Disorder

Caffeine use disorder is characterized by the continued use of caffeine and failure to control use despite negative physical and/or psychological consequences.

• Diagnostic features: Heart, stomach, and urinary problems; anxiety, depression, insomnia, irritability, and difficulty thinking; withdrawal
• Associated features: Individuals have often been told by physicians and medical professionals to reduce or eliminate use; unsuccessful efforts to control use; use despite knowledge of problems caused by caffeine
• Prevalence: Unclear; some evidence suggests that 30 percent of current caffeine users may have met DSM-IV-TR criteria for a diagnosis of caffeine use disorder
• Development and course: A wide range of daily caffeine intake; consumers of various types of caffeinated products and medications; there has been no longitudinal or cross-sectional life span research on caffeine use disorder; it has been identified in both adolescents and adults
• Risk and prognostic factors: Genetic and physiological; heritable effects of caffeine use (or heavy use) shared with alcohol and smoking
• Functional consequences: Caffeine withdrawal produces functional impairment; caffeine intoxication may include symptoms of nausea and vomiting; significant disruptions in daily activities may occur during abstinence
• Differential diagnosis: Non-problematic use of caffeine; other stimulant use disorder; anxiety disorders
• Comorbidity: Daily cigarette smoking; family or personal history of alcohol use disorder; features may be associated with major depression, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, adult antisocial personality disorder, and substance use disorders

Internet Gaming Disorder

There are no well-researched subtypes for internet gaming disorder to date. It most often involves specific internet games, but could involve non-internet computerized games as well, although these have been less researched.

• Diagnostic features: Persistent and recurrent participation in computer gaming, typically group games, for many hours; these games involve competition between groups of players
• Associated features: No consistent personality types associated with internet gaming disorder have been identified
• Prevalence: Unclear; appears to be highest in Asian countries and in male adolescents 12-20 years of age
• Development and course: Not fully determined
• Risk and prognostic factors: Environmental (computer availability with internet connection); genetic and physiological (adolescent males seem to be at greatest risk)
• Functional consequences: School failure; job loss; marriage failure; declining grades; decrease in normal school, social, and family activities
• Differential diagnosis: Not fully determined
• Comorbidity: Neglected health; major depressive disorder; ADHD; obsessive-compulsive disorder

Psychology Education at Concordia University, St. Paul

For those interested in the DSM and related psychology topics, an online degree from Concordia University, St. Paul is an ideal place to start. The online Bachelor of Arts in Psychology program provides a solid educational foundation for continued education through graduate study. Students gain a comprehensive understanding of psychology concepts and applications that prepares them to meet their future career goals.

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Managers need to know how to handle conflict in the workplace. One study found that 85% of employees deal with conflict in their working lives, and it costs U.S. companies an estimated $359 billion annually.

Part of dealing with and resolving conflict as a manager is to recognize common workplace conflicts. Sometimes, a simple disagreement might not require any intervention, but if the same type of situation repeats itself or spreads, you’ll need to get involved. It’s even more important when workers take conflict personally.

This article takes a look at some common conflicts in the workplace. It also features an interview with a manager who offered insight on how to resolve conflict at work. Both topics can help you not only handle conflict better, but become a more efficient manager and leader.

Examples of Common Workplace Conflicts

As you can imagine, common conflicts in the workplace can span all kinds of behavior. Appropriately, researchers have identified different types of conflict that make issues easier to categorize. Negotiation Journal presented three ways to classify common workplace conflicts.

The first type is process conflict, which refers to how work gets done. Delegation and logistics are common causes here, with arguments arising out of different methods, procedures, and strategies that people can take exception to. Common examples would be how specific tasks are distributed to specific team members, who will track minutes during meetings, and who has the final say in brainstorming sessions.

Another type is task conflict, which refers to the content and outcomes of work. What’s the best way to solve a particular task? Several disagreements can develop out of that question in various organizational settings. For instance, a marketing team might have different perspectives on how to allocate a client’s advertising budget for the month. If teams and workers aren’t careful, negative feelings can easily devolve into the final type of workplace conflict.

Relationship conflict is the final and most dangerous type of work conflict. Here, anything unrelated to work can be the culprit. Often, personality clashes are to blame, but other things like political views, hobbies, or social events can be involved. For instance, people in the same marketing team that engaged in task conflict may take things further and start thinking less of other people. Relationship conflict is the biggest threat to employees’ stress and well-being out of all types of workplace conflict.
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How to Handle Conflict in the Workplace

Each conflict in the workplace can require its own special reply. Yet, there are certain principles that guide managers’ reactions to conflict in the workplace. In an interview with Kori Hinkley, a workflow coach at the global publishing company John Wiley & Sons, Inc, she expanded on her approach to workplace conflict and offered an example of it in action. Hinkley coaches and trains enrollment counselors, who help recruit and enroll higher education students.

“When I am addressing conflict, I start out by getting to the root of the problem,” she said. “One of the most frequent things that I see as a manager is miscommunication (verbally and/or written). Communication is an extremely important key to being successful with anything in life and when communication between two co-workers get construed things can get messy quick.”

“In my opinion, resolving conflict often relates back to empathy and understanding, a rather simple skill that some employees don’t often consider will resolve an issue,” she added. “For instance, in the past I have dealt with two employees, on the same team, that encountered conflict with each other daily. When this first started happening I couldn’t really understand what the issue was; both employees were great at their jobs, they were both well into their professional careers, and were seemingly mature for two people that just couldn’t get along with each other. Almost every day one would complain about the other, and it got to a point where other employees noticed. They often argued, but at the same time ignored each other, this clearly wasn’t an efficient or effective way for team mates to communicate, and it started to affect their work.”

Hinkley’s employees may not have started out with relationship conflict, but that was the result. Some workers hide process- or task-related so well that it’s tough to see the signs before they appear in a way similar to the example. Thankfully, it’s not too late to bring employees together to discuss the matter before further dysfunction ensues.

“My plan of action was to speak to both employees and understand each of their points of views on the situation,” Hinkley explained. “I met with both one-on-one. Upon meeting with the first employee, he immediately brought the issue up to me unprompted. He began to complain about the other, saying that he [the other employee] didn’t care about our team and overall just wasn’t a team player. This really bothered him, and he couldn’t seem to understand how someone could be so careless. I spoke with the other employee and, yet again, he brought up the situation to me unprompted, however, his point of view was quite the opposite. He couldn’t understand why there was conflict in the first place. He said he had noticed that the other employee often liked to start arguments with him or seemed to ignore him throughout the day.”

In search of a solution, Hinkley decided to stay true to one of the keys she mentioned initially, with communication. She started encouraging her team members to share how they preferred to communicate. “We did a few team building exercises and had weekly meetings at the end of every week where everyone on the team got tell us their wins for the week and shout out another co-worker for something that they’d done well that week,” Hinkley said. “I quickly noticed that tensions between these two dissolved and things continued to remain friendly and cordial. They both soon realized that they just simply didn’t understand the other and before this often found themselves miscommunicating with each other.”

The example demonstrates how managers can temper emotions and miscommunications that have the power to undermine company culture. Other conflicts can use the same principles, but they’ll likely incorporate other strategies. If you’re looking for a way to better prepare yourself for those situations, the right education can help. You can earn an online MBA that emphasizes strategic leadership, business ethics, and other areas that directly impacts how you communicate and lead others. You’ll also receive instruction in areas like economics, finance and accounting, marketing, and more.

Earn one of the most sought-after degrees in a fully online format from Concordia University, St. Paul. There’s no GMAT or GRE score required, and you can transfer up to 50% of your graduate credits to CSP. Pursue your career goals and learn from professors who have real-world experience.