ABSTRACT
Schizophrenia continues to be a prevalent and incapacitating mental disorder. Its impact is devastating for both individuals so diagnosed and for society. In 1973, more than 140,000 schizophrenics were admitted to state and county mental hospitals in the United States (Taube & Redick, 1976). While the introduction of anti-psychotic medication has prevented these patients from spending the majority of their lives in mental hospitals, many are caught in a “revolving door” pattern of frequent admissions, discharges, and readmissions. Gunderson, Autry, Mosher, and Buchsbaum (1974) reported that one-third of all schizophrenics are rehospitalized within a year of their initial admission and this figure increases to 50% within two years. In addition, discharged schizophrenics are likely to be chronically unemployed, or when they are eligible for work, they typically qualify only for low paying jobs (Keith, Gunderson, Reifman, Buchsbaum, & Mosher, 1976).
