Outcomes paradox

The outcomes paradox is one of the terms for the observation that patients with schizophrenia in developing countries benefit much more from therapy than those in Western countries. This is surprising because the reverse holds for most diseases: "the richer and more developed the country, the better the patient outcome". This paradox came to light in late 60s due to studies done by World Health Organization across the world and has become an "axiom" in international psychiatry since. Cohen et al. criticize this view, and argue that the data do not support this conclusion.