The discussion on the possible inclusion of Attenuated Psychosis Syndrome as an official diagnosis of the DSM-5 was permeated by different values, which underpinned the division between those who argued in favor and those who were against the creation of that new category. The prominence given to certain values generated divergent positions, but which were equally legitimate and well grounded, and which brought up significant questions regarding the potentially innovative scenario of contemporary preventive psychiatry. The ethical preoccupation with suffering, the risks associated with preventive actions and the importance of the role of values in the formulation of diagnostic categories and in psychiatric practice were some of the key issues raised by that debate.
Attenuated psychosis syndrome; values; DSM-5; at-risk mental state