Association for the Advancement of Philosophy and Psychiatry

Purpose

The AAPP is a learned society of psychiatrists and philosophers who share an interest in the interface of philosophy and psychiatry. It was formed to facilitate the integration of those two fields by promoting cross-disciplinary research, educational initiatives, and graduate training programs.

The organization believes that philosophical methods applied to psychiatry bring types of analysis and critique that are valuable for their clarity of thought, meaning, and application to clinical practice. It also believes that psychiatry informs philosophy, and that "philosophy and psychiatry" is developing into an interdisciplinary field of its own. AAPP aims to enhance the psychiatrist's effectiveness as teacher, researcher, and practitioner by shedding light on the philosophical issues embedded in these activities. It also aims to study the ways in which psychiatric knowledge, theories, and practices can add to basic philosophical assumptions about subjects like mind, knowledge, and subjectivity. Specific interest areas of AAPP include the identification and understanding of abnormal experience and behavior; the problem of classifying psychiatric conditions; the relationship between neuroscience and clinical practice; the evaluation of clinical methods; and moral and ethical issues raised by psychiatric categories and practice.