A Comment on Strauss' and Carpenter's Definitions of "What Is Schizophrenia"

Any disorder can be defined as the result of a myriad of influences, but it serves little purpose to include the entire causal network as the definition--assuming that we know the causes. It is better to limit the definition to the salient features shared by all or almost all persons with the disorder. Since we know so little about the etiology of schizophrenia, or its pathophysiology, it is best to use clinical features and some gross description of course, as is described in DSM-III, as the definition most likely to be useful and least likely to contain wrong information.