ABSTRACT
The psychoses are intrusive and often chronic debilitating illnesses that profoundly alter the lives of those who have them. In the public mind, the risk of a person with psychosis being violent to others is generally the source of greater concern than the other types of vulnerability to violence. Much of the research has focused on the epidemiological question of whether violence is associated with psychosis more often than would be expected by chance. In England, widely reported links between psychosis and infamous crimes which had implications for law and mental health or social services first became prominent in the nineteenth century. Interpretation of longitudinal data on people with psychosis, especially when they have been identified by their patient status, must take account of treatment and illness changes if it is to be useful. More studies of the psychosis–substance misuse–violence links, with wide geographical spread but smaller and more selected patient groups, present a mixed picture.
