Psychiatry group allows commenting on Trump

NEWDELHI: The American Psychoanalytic Association has allowed its members to comment on the mental state of politicians, suspending a rule that has been in place since 1973.

The executive committee of the leading psychiatry group sent an email to its 3,500 members, stating they should not feel bound by a longstanding rule against commenting publicly on the mental state of public figures. This also includes President Donald Trump, reported STAT news.

The former president of the association, Dr Prudence Gourguechon, said the email was prompted by “belief in the value of psychoanalytic knowledge in explaining human behaviour”.

“We don’t want to prohibit our members from using their knowledge responsibly... That responsibility is especially great today since Trump’s behaviour is so different from anything we’ve seen before,” she said.

The Goldwater rule of 1964 keeps experts from publicly talking about the psychiatric condition of public figures.

It was written after a survey of more than 1,000 psychiatrists claimed then Republican presidential nominee Barry Goldwater was “psychologically unfit to be President”.

The American Psychoanalytic Association adopted the rule in 1972, reasoning that a psychiatrist has to actually examine a patient in order to diagnose mental health disorders.

According to STAT there are no real consequences for violating the Goldwater rule.