Economic evaluation of psychological treatments for schizophrenia

Schizophrenia has a major impact on the quality of life of sufferers, and its broad impacts on families and the wider society are well known. There are many proven treatments for schizophrenia, including psychological interventions. However, little is known about the economic implications of using these different interventions. This chapter summarises the economic consequences of schizophrenia, discusses reasons why there has been such a limited supply response from economists, and then sets out the main modes of economic evaluation. These modes of evaluation are illustrated by drawing on the examples of evaluations of psychological interventions for the treatment of schizophrenia. The concluding section identifies areas in need of further research.