As other commentators have written, 70,128,134,135 and as we argued in early 2009, 123 the proximal purpose of genetic studies is to gain insight into biology. This goal is crucial for psychiatric disorders as so little is known about pathophysiology, and as highly publicized but ultimately false leads have occurred. For this primary goal, there have been unequivocal successes for many psychiatric disorders. This crucial point is sometimes overlooked: the knowledge base in psychiatric genetics is vastly greater than five years ago, and the rate of change is unprecedented in the history of the field.
