National Institute of Mental Health Longitudinal Study of Chronic Schizophrenia

This study examined young schizophrenic patients who were hospitalized for research purposes in the 1970s and early 1980s. A follow up study was completed six years later, and the authors found that only 20% of the sample had improved, and 38% had attempted suicide. The authors also found that the levels of positive and negative symptoms during the first hospitalization significantly predicted the functioning and time spent in the hospital by patients.