Survey study, 1997
Does learning about PMDD as a diagnosis change how women think about their symptoms?
Learning that PMDD is a diagnosis didn't change women's own symptom reports, but it did make them more likely to see premenstrual problems as a psychiatric issue for women in general.
What they did
134 women completed a questionnaire about their menstrual symptoms. Two weeks later, they completed the same questionnaire again after reading either the official PMDD diagnosis criteria or the same criteria with the word menstrual removed and renamed 'Episodic Dysphoric Disorder.'
What they found
Knowledge of the PMDD diagnosis did not affect how women rated their own symptoms. However, women who read the menstrual-related diagnosis were more likely to think premenstrual problems were a problem for other women and more willing to attach a psychiatric label to other women they know.
What it means for you
The label and connection to menstruation matter. When people know symptoms are linked to the menstrual cycle, they're more likely to think it's a psychiatric disorder, even though this doesn't change how individual women experience their own symptoms. This suggests diagnosis labels can influence how society views premenstrual problems.
134
Participants
2 weeks
Time between questionnaires
About the study
- Original title
- Is a Little (Psychiatric) Knowledge a Dangerous Thing?: The Impact of Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder on Perceptions of Premenstrual Women
- Authors
- Heather C. Nash, Joan C. Chrisler
- Journal
- Psychology of Women Quarterly
- Year
- 1997
- Study design
- Survey study
- What was tested
- Reading different versions of diagnostic criteria
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-6402.1997.tb00115.x
Topics
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