L'examen diagnostique est-il normatif ?

Grégoire, Jacques [UCL]

In this article, we examine two activities, which are part of the clinical examination, classifying and measuring. Both may appear normative, the first one because it defines a caesura between pathology and mental health, the second because it induces a comparison with the average scores of the population. We show that some use of classifications and measures can actually be normative, but that they are not inherently prescriptive. This information can provide a positive contribution to the understanding of the patients when it is used intelligently and critically. Thanks to the classifications, we can rely on previous experiences of similar problems, while measures allow us to relativize our clinical observations and establish benchmarks to study the evolution of characteristics examined.