Friedrich Kraepelin

Friedrich Kraepelin was a pioneering German psychiatrist, active in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He is best known for his systematic classification of mental disorders, laying the groundwork for modern psychiatric diagnosis. Kraepelin distinguished between different types of mental illnesses, such as manic-depressive illness and schizophrenia, emphasizing their biological and hereditary aspects. His influential writings helped establish psychiatry as a distinct medical discipline and shifted views on mental health, focusing on observable symptoms and patterns rather than moral or psychological explanations alone. His work continues to impact the field of psychiatry today.