We are witnessing a tragedy unfolding before our eyes. Seemingly every day, the world is abuzz with the latest controversy, which these days seem to almost invariably be about who is responsible for sharing so-called “misinformation” and who is responsible to moderate it. This is a terrifying trajectory that has no good outcome. As ofContinue reading “Misinformation & The Death of Personal Responsibility”
Author Archives: Dr. Rod Hoevet
Jails & Prisons Are Not Full of Mentally Ill People
We commonly hear that jails and prisons are loaded with mentally ill people. They aren’t. This illusion was created by flawed data and bad assessment, which actually harms the mentally ill who already struggle to find adequate treatment & escape stigma.
America Has Borderline Personality Disorder
Perhaps people have always been unreasonable. Even if we look back to the origins of humanity, maybe there has never been a reasonable time. Perhaps there has never been a time when people listened to each other, truly considered thoughts and ideas (even when they were opposed to their own) and offered measured or reasonableContinue reading “America Has Borderline Personality Disorder”
Are Personality Disorders Mental Illnesses? The Legal Implications.
The legal system often struggles to define and manage mental illnesses in criminal cases, but personality disorders make the issue of definition and culpability even more complex.
Mental Illness, Guns & Violence: What’s Really Going On?
Media and public figures often pair mass shootings and gun violence with mental illness. This is a reckless and ill-informed myth that harms the mentally ill and results in widespread misrepresentations of mental illness. It also fails to account for those who are truly guilty of these atrocities.
When Mental Illness & the Law Collide
Part 3: Criminal Responsibility (Insanity) The insanity defense has been plagued by myths and misunderstandings since its beginnings [2]. As introduced in Part 2, insanity is fundamentally different from competence in several ways. First, insanity claims are rare. The general public tends to believe the insanity defense is commonly used. This is due, in part,Continue reading “When Mental Illness & the Law Collide”
When Mental Illness & the Law Collide
Defendants may be suspected of having inadequate present knowledge of their legal cases. When this occurs, they require a formal evaluation that may render them incompetent or unfit to stand trial. This can be a complicated psycholegal issue that impacts more than just the defendant.
When Mental Illness & the Law Collide
The mentally ill are increasingly interacting with every level of the criminal justice system, even though this system was never designed to function in this role.
In this series, I cover several places and ways that the mentally ill encounter the legal system, starting with Part I: Law Enforcement & Incarceration
When Patients are Controversial
As the American culture continues to change, questions and issues that therapists personally disagree with are bound to come up. What is the appropriate and ethical response when these conflicts arise?
The Dangers of Misdiagnosing Mental Illness
Although diagnosing mental illness can be challenging, mental health clinicians too often make reckless misdiagnoses. The consequences of misdiagnosis are wide-ranging, all of which include poor outcomes for patients. Clinicians need to return to simple, ethical best practices to solve this prolific problem.
Rod E. Hoevet, Psy.D. 