How can a show about nothing be used to teach medical students about psychopathology?
At Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick, N.J., every episode of the iconic 1990's sitcom Seinfeld is now learning material for third- and fourth-year students, according to a NewJersey.com report.
Anthony Tobia, MD, a clinical associate professor of psychiatry at Rutgers-RWJ Medical School created "Psy-feld" in 2009. Although not officially a course, Psy-feld is a required part of the training Dr. Tobia provides for clinical psychiatry.
"You have a very diverse group of personality traits that are maladaptive on the individual level," Dr. Tobia said. "When you get these friends together the dynamic is such that it literally creates a plot: Jerry's obsessive compulsive traits combined with Kramer's schizoid traits, with Elaine's inability to forge meaningful relationships and with George being egocentric."
Students participating in the program are assigned to watch the 6 p.m. episode of Seinfeld aired on TBS. The next morning, round begins with a discussion on what psychopathology was demonstrated during the episode.
Dr. Tobias has created a database of all 180 Seinfeld episodes. Nearly every character can be used in the program, he told NJ.com reporters.
"In order for a surgeon to teach from a movie or TV show, there has to be surgery," Dr. Tobia said. "In order for an internist to teach from a movie or TV show, there has to be the portrayal of an illness. Well, every movie, every TV show has human behavior, so a psychiatrist should be able to teach."
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