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Sanidad Militar
Print version ISSN 1887-8571
Abstract
GARCIA SILGO, M.. Is malingering mental disorder a stereotyped diagnosis in the military?. Sanid. Mil. [online]. 2019, vol.75, n.3, pp.143-155. Epub Jan 20, 2020. ISSN 1887-8571. https://dx.doi.org/10.4321/s1887-85712019000300004.
From the beginning of Western culture, malingering mental problems has been described as a method used to avoid military recruitment or escape from war. For centuries, the association between malingering and the military has persisted, creating in the 20th century a specific criterion in the main manuals of psychiatric classification, albeit having no objective evidence to support members of the military as more prone to malinger than other professionals. Is the diagnosis of malingering mental disorder stereotyped in the military?
Objective:
To reflect on whether or not the current classification of malingering mental disorder is based on scientific evidence.
Method:
After carrying out bibliographical searches the following constructs were analysed: the historical evolution of the concept, the methodology of its detection, the consequences suffered by the military when they were labelled as malingerers. Finally, prevalence studies were examined.
Results:
Military contexts do not present high rates of malingering nowadays and yet it seems that malingering-military stereotype remains in the forensic perspective.
Conclusion:
There is no empirical justification to include a specific malingering criterion for military personnel in psychiatric diagnosis manuals. However, this criterion contributes to stigmatizing military personnel who present real psychological problems. In addition, it encourages dissimulation or faking good. Hopefully, the present article will help include psychosocial factors in the biological model of malingering, fight against double stigma associated with mental problems in the military, dignify the invisible wounds of war and restore the honour of those who have been condemned or executed in the past for suffering mental disorders.
Keywords : Malingering; military; double stigma; mental disorder diagnosis; dissimulation.
