American Psychiatric Association

The American Psychiatric Association introduced emerging measures to the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) classification system. The authors present a primer on dimensional assessment and a review of the emerging measures endorsed by the American Psychiatric Association. The development of the emerging measures is discussed in light of the 1999 Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing and the DSM-5 criteria, showing that the measures lack conformity to various evidences of validity and lack alignment with the DSM-5 criteria. Hence, counselors should be cautious in the adoption of such measures because the measures may not augment comprehensively the categorical system of diagnosis currently endorsed by the American Psychiatric Association.