Nicole Rust
Department of Psychology
University of Pennsylvania

“A New-New Intellectual Framework for Psychiatry”

In 1998, Eric Kandel published the brilliant essay A New Intellectual Framework for Psychiatry. In it, he described a revolution to move psychiatry away from the psychoanalytic tradition (focused exclusively on the mind) to one that incorporated biology, with an emphasis on genetic inheritance and genetic expression. He predicted that this revolution would have a profound impact on psychiatry. While notable discoveries have been made in the 27 years since, those profound impacts have yet to be realized. For instance, one goal has long been to create biological tests (like blood tests and brain scans) to diagnose psychiatric conditions, and those tests still do not exist. In this talk, I will argue that a second revolution is happening in this space — one required to fulfill Kandel’s original vision. To illustrate these changes, I will update Kandel’s framework to incorporate emerging ideas. I will also caution (as Kandel did) that success will require interaction between practitioners focused on broader psychiatric considerations and those focused on more detailed biological insights.

Directly after the seminar, all are invited to join us for the MindCORE Welcome Back event!