Part 1: Exploration
1. For my research project I plan to focus on the issue of psychotropic medication being over prescribed.
2. I am interested in psychology and that is my intended major right now. I am debating about being a psychologist or psychiatrist. Either way this is an issue in my field of choice.
3. I think it is a growing problem in our society. When you visit a psychiatrist, one can most likely leave with medicine and each year many are misdiagnosed.
4. I already know that many symptoms can be mislead for different mental illnesses. Also, that psychiatrist are not clearly doing the proper procedures to determine an illness due to time. I am most curious about why society feels in order to feel better you have to be doped up on drugs.
5. I expect to due the most research in psychology and medicine. I assume it is studied by statistics and observation.
6. I could interview psychiatrist, psychologist, and patients willing to talk to me about their experience with drugs being over prescribed.
Part 2: Focusing
Are psychotropic drugs being over prescribed in America?
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2 comments:
Sounds like an interesting topic. I suppose whether these drugs are being "overprescribed" depends on who you talk to, but maybe you can find some data about the general increase in prescriptions to support your claim.
Are you interested in all meds? Antidepressants and stimulants (e.g., Ritalin) get a lot of media attention. They also tend to be big moneymakers for drug companies.
This is a complex issue: as you've suggested, the cause may be partly lack of time for proper diagnosis and treatment. Maybe economic and social pressures also come into play.
I wonder whether we are medicating people--especially children--to help them cope with oppressive social situations (such as stressed-out families and competitive, test-driven schools) rather than changing the systems that perpetuate these problems.
I look forward to seeing how your research evolves over the next several weeks.
I want to add, in the interest of fairness, that psych. meds do help a lot of people when properly prescribed. Again, it's not a black-and-white issue.
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