A psychologist in Kolkata writes in a report that a client's problem belongs to a particular category of psychological disorders. A psychiatrist in Delhi who reads the report later knows at once which group of shared features is meant, and plans treatment without asking for a long description. Which use of classifying psychological disorders does this situation best show?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → It enables professionals to communicate with each other about the disorder
Option (1) It helps in understanding the causes of the disorder — Incorrect. Classification does help in understanding the causes of a disorder. But the psychiatrist in this case learns nothing new about what caused the problem; she only understands the category her colleague named.
Option (2) It presents discrete clinical criteria for the presence or absence of a disorder — Incorrect. This describes DSM-5, the manual of the American Psychiatric Association. Its criteria indicate whether a disorder is present or absent. The case is about two experts sharing one meaning.
Option (3) It helps in understanding how the disorder develops and is maintained — Incorrect. Classification also helps in understanding the processes by which a disorder develops and is maintained. The case says nothing about how the client's problem grew or why it continues, so this use is not shown here.
Option (4) It enables professionals to communicate with each other about the disorder — Correct. A classification is a list of <strong>categories of disorders grouped by shared characteristics</strong>. Because both experts use the same categories, one category name tells the psychiatrist what the psychologist means. This is the use of <strong>communicating with each other about the disorder</strong>.
NCERT (2026-27): “CLASSIFICATION OF PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS |