Draft:Harmful Dysfunction Analysis: Difference between revisions

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[[File:Jerome Wakefield's 2008 Image1Lecture.pngjpg|thumb|Jerome Wakefield]]

[[File:Jerome Wakefield Image1.png|thumb|Jerome Wakefield]]

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HDA holds that both harm and dysfunction must be present for a condition to be a mental disorder. The dysfunction element of the theory provides an objective basis for diagnosis, while the harm element allows diagnoses to remain culturally sensitive. As a result, not every dysfunction is a mental disorder, and not every harmful condition is a mental disorder.

An example Wakefield uses to prove this is dyslexia. Essentially, a failure of the language-processing system in the brain, dyslexia counts as a dysfunction. However, whether it is considered a mental disorder depends on the cultural context. In a literate society, where reading is indispensable to daily life, dyslexia leads to clear disadvantages and would therefore be a disorder. In a pre-literate society where reading is not a necessary skill, it would not result in harm or be viewed as a disorder. Wakefield describes such cases as “harmless dysfunctions”, biological failures that do not produce socially meaningful problems(). Wakefield also highlights other conditions like criminality and illiteracy, which are harmful but do not stem from dysfunction. This illustrates that harm alone is insufficient.

== Criticisms ==