Psychopathology and clinical course of schizophrenia: a cross-cultural perspective

The authors critically review the existing literature on the outcome of schizophrenia in non-Western countries. Compared to studies conducted in Europe and North America, the majority of these non-Western longitudinal followup studies indicated significantly better outcome. Such cross-national variations in the outcome of schizophrenia have been substantiated by two large-scale multicentered studies sponsored by the World Health Organization. Along with this literature review, the authors also discuss potential methodological problems of these studies and examine in detail several key hypotheses concerning mediating factors that could differentially influence the fate of schizophrenic patients in divergent cultural settings. Finally, specific suggestions are made for future research directions.