Introducing The Digital Diagnostic Statistical Manual (DDSM)
A speculative index of disorders for the algorithmic age.
Where identity loops, presence flickers, and performance becomes selfhood.
Get scanned. Get diagnosed.
The mirror is your reminder.
Your reflection, refracted.
The Digital Diagnostic Statistical Manual (DDSM) is a speculative classification system for emerging psychological conditions shaped by content culture, algorithmic feedback loops, and digital life.
Each disorder follows a structured taxonomy—an encoded logic that mimics clinical language while revealing the emotional patterns of a machine-shaped world. The format is simple but expansive, designed for both precision and play.
[Abbreviation] [Category][Subdomain][Subtype].[Variant]
Every disorder in the DDSM includes a five-part diagnostic code:
Abbreviation (3-letter)
Short form of the disorder name
Category (1–9)
Core class of dysfunction
Subdomain (A–Z)
Domain of origin (e.g., algorithmic, generative, interface, memory)
Subtype (0–9)
Functional effect or manifestation type
Variant (.00–.99)
Specific instance, severity, or style
1
Affective Modulation Disorders
Mood regulation & emotional conditioning
2
Relational Instability Disorders
Parasocial, social, or mirror-based dysfunction
3
Cognitive Patterning Disorders
Thought loops, attention, mental drift
4
Temporal Identity Disorders
Memory, continuity, narrative structure
5
Self-Presence Disorders
Embodiment, physical disconnection
6
Expression & Interface Disorders
Communication, aesthetic or self-staging collapse
7
Systemic Identity Disorders
Algorithmic, AI, and system-level rewrites
8
Symbolic-Epistemic Disorders
Truth, simulation, moral/perceptual drift
9
Existential Displacement
Reality collapse, post-authenticity
This structure turns diagnosis into a language—and language into reflection.
Now it’s your turn.
What would you name the condition you live with every day?
What if your patterns had a code?
What if your algorithm wrote your symptoms?
