Three distinct trends in modern psychiatry distract from a proper concern with the phenomena of mental disorders. Pressures of time and heavy case loads may stand in the way of detailed exploration of mental states. A quick scan for a few critical markers — mood disturbance, thought disorder, delusions, hallucinations, cognitive dysfunction — often seems to suffice for currently accepted diagnostic classifications and treatment decisions. And thirdly, clinical science in psychiatry is dominated by neurological, epidemiological, and psychosocial themes which commonly disregard the intricate realities of abnormal psychic phenomena.