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In recent adaptations like Suicide Squad Isekai (2024) and Joker: Folie à Deux (2024), Harley Quinn (Dr. Harleen Quinzel) is portrayed as a psychiatrist. In Suicide Squad Isekai, she is described as "a former psychiatrist at Arkham Asylum." In Joker: Folie à Deux, it's stated that "she went to grad school for psychiatry."

However, according to her Wikipedia article, her origin story establishes that she holds a Ph.D. in psychology rather than an M.D. in psychiatry, which contradicts these recent portrayals.

Dr. Harleen Frances Quinzel, PhD

Quinn's origin story features her as a former psychologist at Gotham City's Arkham Asylum

Abilities:
[…]
PhD in psychology

Have the comics or other DC media retconned or added to her educational background, leading to these newer adaptations depicting her as a psychiatrist (a medical doctor) rather than a psychologist with a Ph.D.? I'd like to know more about the context and history of this change in her academic background.

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    That is not mutually exclusive. Maybe she is a psychologist with a medical degree.
    – Eike Pierstorff
    Commented Nov 13 at 9:36
  • She could have both, or perhaps she was in middle of studying for the PHD when she started seeing joker in the asylum and finished her degree before she became Harley Quinn? or maybe she finished it after becoming Harley Quinn just to help manipulate batman and her Pudding.
    – Brad
    Commented Nov 13 at 13:26
  • dcau.fandom.com/wiki/Harley_Quinn#Origins I would have to rewatch the episode
    – Clockwork
    Commented Nov 13 at 15:14

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The original show in which she was created by Bruce Timm and Paul Dini is Batman: The Animated Series (1992).

There is one episode which delves in details in her background and how she ended up with the Joker, titled Mad Love, but after rewatching it, it doesn't look like the characters are calling out her profession in any way. We only see her arrive at Arkham Asylum to start working on high profile patients, since she believes they are more exciting to work with.

In another earlier episode titled Harlequinade, the following conversation happens (emphasis mine):

Harley: Did you see the way I handled those creeps? Pow! Bam! Batgirl, eat your heart out!
Robin: What was she before she went bonkers?
Batman: A clinical psychiatrist.
Robin: Figures.

So it looks like her background didn't change from psychologist to psychiatrist but the other way around. Or whoever wrote that in Wikipedia chose the wrong vocabulary, if there is no source to support that claim.

That being said, different shows tend to have events happening differently. Usually, it's because of who wrote the story, but I guess it can also be chalked up to "different universes" in-universe.

In the comics, in the canon first appearance, Batman: Harley Quinn (1999), she was recounting her story after being retrieved/saved by Poison Ivy from rubble.

She was described as being an intern at Arkham Asylum, and her doctor's license was revoked when they found out she was helping the Joker escaping from the place. She also briefly said she had "a couple years of med scool" when asked for help in saving injured civilians.

Doctor Quinzel recounting her story from the beginning: "Well, if you remember anything at all about me, it was probably that I was just another no-fun intern doing my first-year residency at Arkham", before Poison Ivy cuts in: "And that you were trying to convince the higher-ups to let you hold private sessions with the Joker. Talk about living dangerously". We can see a drawing from former Doctor Quinzel: a blonde woman with neck-long hair, wearing a white blouse and a sky blue necktie.

In the flashback, Doctor Quinzel is sitting in front of a doctor talking to her from the other side of his desk. Although she is handcuffed, she seems to be whistling music as the doctor is addressing her. She recounts: "Doctor Arkham was furious, of course. He had my doctor's license revoked and committed me on the spot.

In the background, some buildings seem to be in ruin. Some police officers are carrying two injured civilians out. One of them spots Doctor Quinzel and asks her if she is a doctor, to which the latter replies she had a couple years of medical school.

Then later on, Batman called her a demented therapist.

Batman and Harley Quinn meet for the first time as she just recently joined Joker's gang. She introduces herself: "The name is Quinn, Harley Quinn!", to which Batman replies: "I know you. The demented therapist who thinks she's in love with the Joker."

I don't know much about the difference between a psychologist and a psychiatrist, but a quick search seems to bring up that licensed therapists need a Master's Degree, whilst psychologists would have a Ph.D instead, which seems to fit with your description.

So far, it looks like in both animated series and comics adaptation, she was never described as being a psychologist in the original origin stories.

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  • Seeing that all her late portrayals also depict her as a psychiatrist, I would tend towards Wikipedia having faulty information. Especially seeing the original story also depicting her as a psychiatrist and not a psychologist as claimed.
    – Clockwork
    Commented Nov 13 at 21:17
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    It would be interesting to see if her comics origin ever diverged from the animated one. Maybe Wikipedia is going off comics canon, since most superhero characters originate in comics and are later adapted to movies/TV (even though for Harley it was the other way around).
    – MartianInvader
    Commented Nov 13 at 21:36
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It just sounds like sloppiness or lack of awareness of the distinction to me. In particular, saying that "she went to graduate school for psychiatry" makes no sense. In America, one goes to medical school to get a M. D. degree, then further residency and other training to become a psychiatrist.

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  • It might also try to address the fact that a psychologist in an "asylum" would be a bit useless, since they are not allowed to prescribe medication.
    – Eike Pierstorff
    Commented Nov 13 at 16:15

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