#1095 Robert Krueger: Classification of Mental Disorders, and Mental Wellbeing

May 9, 2025

Robert Krueger, Distinguished McKnight Professor at the University of Minnesota, delves into the complexities of classifying mental disorders. He critiques traditional methods and advocates for the HiTOP model, which offers a more nuanced, dimensional perspective. The conversation also explores the evolution of personality disorder classifications and emphasizes the importance of subjective well-being in understanding mental health. Krueger shares insights on balancing academic engagement in a digital world and the significance of recognizing emotional nuances.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

INSIGHT

Clinical Observation Drives Diagnosis

Psychiatric classification is based mainly on clinical observation of symptom clusters, similar to medicine's approach.
Diagnostic systems like DSM and ICD categorize disorders by criteria but struggle with strict category boundaries.

INSIGHT

Mental Disorder Defined by Goal Thwarting

A mental disorder involves symptoms that are debilitating and cause social or occupational dysfunction.
Krueger's cybernetic perspective sees psychopathology as distress from inability to meet goals with novel strategies.

INSIGHT

Personality Organizes Psychopathology

Personality and psychopathology are closely related; personality traits organize symptom presentation.
The main difference is time scale: traits are enduring, symptoms vary over time.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

******Support the channel******

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thedissenter

PayPal: paypal.me/thedissenter

PayPal Subscription 3 Dollars: https://tinyurl.com/ybn6bg9l

PayPal Subscription 5 Dollars: https://tinyurl.com/ycmr9gpz

PayPal Subscription 10 Dollars: https://tinyurl.com/y9r3fc9m

PayPal Subscription 20 Dollars: https://tinyurl.com/y95uvkao

******Follow me on******

Website: https://www.thedissenter.net/

The Dissenter Goodreads list: https://shorturl.at/7BMoB

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedissenteryt/

Twitter: https://x.com/TheDissenterYT

This show is sponsored by Enlites, Learning & Development done differently. Check the website here: http://enlites.com/

Dr. Robert Krueger is Distinguished McKnight University Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Minnesota. His specialties include behavior genetics, clinical and personality psychology, quantitative psychology, personality disorders, aging, and health. He is one of the most highly cited psychologists in the world. He is part ofthe leadership of an international project, The Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP), which aims to articulate a taxonomy of symptoms that provide researchers and practitioners with a means to describe an individual’s mental health issues, as well as their major and minor symptoms, along a spectrum.

In this episode, we start by talking about how psychiatric disorders are classified in the DSM and the ICD. We discuss what a mental disorder is, and the relationship between personality traits and psychopathology. We then talk about The Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology, the relationship between symptoms and traits, etiology and causal influences, and how disorders are classified within this framework. We also talk about a general factor of psychopathology, and personality disorders. Finally, we discuss subjective wellbeing, and how it relates to personality traits.

A HUGE THANK YOU TO MY PATRONS/SUPPORTERS: PER HELGE LARSEN, JERRY MULLER, BERNARDO SEIXAS, ADAM KESSEL, MATTHEW WHITINGBIRD, ARNAUD WOLFF, TIM HOLLOSY, HENRIK AHLENIUS, FILIP FORS CONNOLLY, ROBERT WINDHAGER, RUI INACIO, ZOOP, MARCO NEVES, COLIN HOLBROOK, PHIL KAVANAGH, SAMUEL ANDREEFF, FRANCIS FORDE, TIAGO NUNES, FERGAL CUSSEN, HAL HERZOG, NUNO MACHADO, JONATHAN LEIBRANT, JOÃO LINHARES, STANTON T, SAMUEL CORREA, ERIK HAINES, MARK SMITH, JOÃO EIRA, TOM HUMMEL, SARDUS FRANCE, DAVID SLOAN WILSON, YACILA DEZA-ARAUJO, ROMAIN ROCH, DIEGO LONDOÑO CORREA, YANICK PUNTER, CHARLOTTE BLEASE, NICOLE BARBARO, ADAM HUNT, PAWEL OSTASZEWSKI, NELLEKE BAK, GUY MADISON, GARY G HELLMANN, SAIMA AFZAL, ADRIAN JAEGGI, PAULO TOLENTINO, JOÃO BARBOSA, JULIAN PRICE, EDWARD HALL, HEDIN BRØNNER, DOUGLAS FRY, FRANCA BORTOLOTTI, GABRIEL PONS CORTÈS, URSULA LITZCKE, SCOTT, ZACHARY FISH, TIM DUFFY, SUNNY SMITH, JON WISMAN, WILLIAM BUCKNER, PAUL-GEORGE ARNAUD, LUKE GLOWACKI, GEORGIOS THEOPHANOUS, CHRIS WILLIAMSON, PETER WOLOSZYN, DAVID WILLIAMS, DIOGO COSTA, ALEX CHAU, AMAURI MARTÍNEZ, CORALIE CHEVALLIER, BANGALORE ATHEISTS, LARRY D. LEE JR., OLD HERRINGBONE, MICHAEL BAILEY, DAN SPERBER, ROBERT GRESSIS, JEFF MCMAHAN, JAKE ZUEHL, BARNABAS RADICS, MARK CAMPBELL, TOMAS DAUBNER, LUKE NISSEN, KIMBERLY JOHNSON, JESSICA NOWICKI, LINDA BRANDIN, GEORGE CHORIATIS, VALENTIN STEINMANN, ALEXANDER HUBBARD, BR, JONAS HERTNER, URSULA GOODENOUGH, DAVID PINSOF, SEAN NELSON, MIKE LAVIGNE, JOS KNECHT, LUCY, MANVIR SINGH, PETRA WEIMANN, CAROLA FEEST, MAURO JÚNIOR, 航豊川, TONY BARRETT, NIKOLAI VISHNEVSKY, STEVEN GANGESTAD, TED FARRIS, AND ROBINROSWELL!

A SPECIAL THANKS TO MY PRODUCERS, YZAR WEHBE, JIM FRANK, ŁUKASZ STAFINIAK, TOM VANEGDOM, BERNARD HUGUENEY, CURTIS DIXON, BENEDIKT MUELLER, THOMAS TRUMBLE, KATHRINE AND PATRICK TOBIN, JONCARLO MONTENEGRO, NICK GOLDEN, CHRISTINE GLASS, IGOR NIKIFOROVSKI, PER KRAULIS, AND BENJAMIN GELBART!

AND TO MY EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS, MATTHEW LAVENDER, SERGIU CODREANU, ROSEY, AND GREGORY HASTINGS!