Center Seminar

The Premises and Promises of Precision Psychiatry

Kathryn Tabb, PhD

Assistant Professor of Philosophy

Columbia University

Maël Lemoine, PhD

Professor of Philosophy

University of Tours

Like other medical researchers, many psychiatrists have embraced what’s been heralded as a transformative new paradigm: “precision medicine,” the search for new therapies based on genetic and molecular biomarkers. Here we argue that the model of precision medicine that is showing promise in fields like oncology is currently inapplicable to psychiatry, which lacks loci of control allowing for precise interventions. Calling psychiatry “precise” thus encourages unreasonable optimism about research strategies that cannot, as of yet, impact clinical care. We conclude by discussing the ethical repercussions of such optimism.

Board Room #6601

New York State Psychiatric Institute
1051 Riverside Drive