Factors influencing compliance in schizophrenia patients.

Scientifically, compliance can be expressed as the ratio between an observed treatment behavior and given treatment standards. Although the factors that influence compliance often overlap or influence each other, it is possible to differentiate between factors that are related to the patient, the patient's environment, the treating clinician, and treatment itself. Although this differentiation is in some ways artificial, it may aid the practicing clinician in assessing the various reasons why a particular patient is likely to develop or has already developed compliance problems.