INTRODUCTION TO THE SPECIAL SECTION ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF THEORETICALLY COHERENT ALTERNATIVES TO THE DSM SYSTEM

This introduction outlines a series of articles in the Journal of Cons ulting and Clinical Psychology that represent a theoretically organize d challenge to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorde rs (DSM, e.g., 4th ed.; American Psychiatric Association, 1994). A cri ticism of the DSM is offered on the basis that a taxonomy based on ina dequately explicated theory has not been and cannot be a successful ba sis for a scientific research program. The special section offers exam ples of behaviorally based alternative ways of understanding behavior of clinical interest. Others are invited to develop taxonomies based o n different theoretically coherent foundations.