Schizophrenia, a severe and often debilitating mental illness that affects approximately 1% of the population, can present a myriad of problems that may be directly or indirectly related to the specific features of the illness. Schizophrenia-related aggression, a by-product of considerable concern, has wide-reaching impacts that can affect a number of areas, ranging from treatment to victimization and, ultimately, the course of the illness. This particular aspect of the illness can also place greater demands on public resources, such as the hospital and staff or the criminal justice system, as well as models of care. The present study aims to investigate the correlates of aggression, some of which have received more attention to date (e.g. illness symptoms) than others (e.g. happiness). The data for this research were retrospective, and allowed for a matched sample of 16 pairs (N=32). The primary source for this work was a database initiated in 2003 at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, Canada, and for each case the patient's psychiatrist or case manager provided any missing information. The present investigation adds to a small, but growing, body of evidence examining aggression, specifically in the earliest stages of schizophrenia.
