On Unicorns Blocking Commitment Law Reform

Abstract

Four surveys of the attitudes of psychiatrists toward issues related to involuntary civil commitment law are reviewed. This article shows that, contrary to popular opinion, psychiatrists favor increased due process of law protections and rights for patients both during and after commitment proceedings. These attitudes have been relatively stable over the past decade. In contrast with other groups, psychiatrists may be less emphatic in their support of rights, but the attitudes of psychiatrists when examined on an absolute scale clearly favor increased rights.