Research News

Summaries of research findings that tell of a scientific need to "rethink psychiatry."

Psychologist Debunks Common Misconceptions of Maslow’s Hierarchy

9
Utilizing Maslow’s published books and essays, psychologist William Compton delineates common myths and attempts to respond to them.

Systemic Violence and the Mental Health Industrial Complex

26
A recent paper, by Dr. Eric Greene, builds upon critiques of the biomedical model and illustrates how the mental health industrial complex overmedicates, stigmatizes,...

New Research Questions Safety of Esketamine for Depression

10
An analysis of FDA adverse event reports related to esketamine shows the potential for negative effects such as suicidal and self-injurious ideation.

Psychiatry and the Selves We Might Become: An Interview with Sociologist Nikolas Rose

32
MIA’s Ayurdhi Dhar interviews the well-known sociologist of medicine, Nikolas Rose, about the role psychiatry plays in shaping how we manage ourselves and our world.

Disability and Decolonial Studies Disrupt the Medical Model

9
Critical disability studies and decolonial analyses take on structural oppression and challenge concepts of normality, mental health, and ability.

Tapering Strips Help People Discontinue Antidepressants

17
A new study by Peter Groot and Jim van Os has found that tapering strips help people successfully discontinue antidepressant medications.

United Nations Report Calls for Revolution in Mental Health Care

18
In a new report, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to health, Dr. Dainius Pūras, calls for a move away from the biomedical model and “excessive use of psychotropic medicines.”

For People “At Risk for Psychosis,” Antipsychotics Associated with Worse Outcomes

27
Researchers studied whether antipsychotics could prevent transition to full psychosis and found that the drugs worsened outcomes.

Addressing the Roots of Racial Trauma: An Interview with Psychologist Lillian Comas-Díaz

8
MIA’s Hannah Emerson interviews Comas-Díaz on the need for culturally competent care in a medicalized and individualistic society.

When Healing Looks Like Justice: An Interview with Harvard Psychologist Joseph Gone

5
MIA’s Ayurdhi Dhar interviews Joseph Gone about how a history of dispossession, conquest, and colonization shapes mental health outcomes in Native American communities.

Anti-Stigma Campaigns Enable Inequality, Sociologists Argue

103
Scholars contend that stigma functions as a mechanism of power in analysis of UK Heads Together mental health campaign.

Understanding the Neurobiology of Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction

2
Post-SSRI sexual dysfunction (PSSD) may be a common adverse effect of antidepressants. Researchers are now attempting to understand the neurobiology behind it.

Antidepressants, Antipsychotics, and Benzos All Increase Suicide Attempts in New Study

3
In a study of people with borderline personality disorder, only ADHD stimulants were associated with a decrease in suicide.

Antidepressants Increase Risk of Death, Study Finds

2
Antidepressants are commonly considered safe and effective treatments. However, research has questioned their efficacy, and now, their safety.

Growing Research Connects Nutrition and Mental Health

15
A new article reviews studies in the field of nutritional psychiatry and how nutrition can prevent and treat mental health issues.

Māori Approach to Mental Health Offers Empowering Alternative to Western Psychiatry

33
A new article explores Mahi a Atua, an affirming indigenous Māori healing practice which stands in contrast to the Western psychiatric methods typically promoted by the Movement for Global Mental Health.

The Creation of a Conceptual Alternative to the DSM: An Interview with Dr. Lucy...

103
MIA's Zenobia Morrill interviews Lucy Johnstone about the reaction to the Power Threat Meaning Framework, her life influences, and her hopes for the future.

Bringing Human Rights to Mental Health Care: An Interview with UN Envoy Dainius Pūras

21
MIA's Ana Florence interviews United Nations Special Rapporteur Dainius Pūras about his own journey as a psychiatrist and the future of rights-based approaches to mental health.

Antidepressant Use Leads to Worse Long Term Outcomes, Study Finds

32
Results from a 30-year prospective study demonstrated worse outcomes for people who took antidepressants, even after controlling for gender, education level, marriage, baseline severity, other affective disorders, suicidality, and family history of depression.

Researchers Warn of “Brain Atrophy” in Children Prescribed Antipsychotics

20
Researchers discuss the evidence that antipsychotic medications may cause brain atrophy in children, whose brains are still developing.

Vitamin B6 Effective in Reducing Antipsychotic Induced Akathisia

9
A recent RCT showed that vitamin B6 is as effective as propranolol for the treatment of akathisia.

Learning a Different Way: An Interview with Maori Psychiatrist Diana Kopua

10
MIA’s Ayurdhi Dhar interviews Diana Kopua about the Mahi a Atua approach, the global mental health movement, and the importance of language and narratives in how we understand our world and ease our suffering.

Increasing Numbers of Children Prescribed Multiple Psychiatric Medications

17
According to researchers, children are being increasingly prescribed multiple different psychiatric medications.

Does Psychotherapy Reproduce or Disrupt Neoliberal Capitalism?

42
Researchers explore neoliberal influences on interactions in psychotherapy and question whether the radical potential of psychotherapy can counter prevailing social systems.

How to Distinguish Antidepressant Withdrawal from Relapse

5
Mark Horowitz and David Taylor provide advice on how to tell the difference between antidepressant withdrawal and depression relapse.