Computer-assisted phenotype characterization for genetic research in psychiatry.

Psychiatric disorders differ from other complex phenotypes in their lack of objectively assessable biological markers that contribute to the establishment of a research diagnosis for genetic studies. To nevertheless allow for the delineation of genetically meaningful diagnostic entities for psychiatric genetic research, comprehensive phenotype characterization procedures are required. It is widely agreed that these should include the standardized assessment of life-time clinical symptomatology, sociodemographic, and environmental factors.