In comparing the case-records of discharged and long-term hospitalized schizophrenic patients it was found that the latter tended to be older, had been ill longer, had been isolated more often, were disadvantaged socially and had been admitted to hospital compulsorily; they had been more frequently diagnosed as defect schizophrenics and less rarely had adequate physical treatment. In conclusion it appears that long-term hospitalization is but the final outcome of a long drawn out process which is decisively influenced by social factors.