Our knowledge of the Barnum effect is helpful in better understanding the social psychology of what happens in mental health practice. In spite of the reservations of many clinical psychologists, it is standard practice to diagnose people suffering psychological distress (or unusual or socially unacceptable behaviour) as being mentally ill. A patient typically takes such a diagnostic label on board and incorporates it into their self-concept. If an expert says they have schizophrenia then it must be so.
However, as Forer’s ‘mind reading’ study shows, we all have pretty much any psychological characteristic to some extent. This probably means that sometimes we take mental health diagnoses rather more seriously than we should. The fact that an expert appears to have recognised something in us can be very comforting, but it does not necessarily mean that they are correct or that their diagnosis will be ultimately helpful. This is not to reject the practice of diagnosis, just to better understand the psychology of the situation.
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