The schizophrenic diathesis and the kibbutz

In this article, the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) "Israeli High Risk Study," which extended over two decades and compared the relative effects of kibbutz and city environments on the diathesis of schizophrenia, is critically examined. Comparison data on personality and cognitive functions of groups of 11- to 16-year-olds and adults are reviewed in the light of previously published material. The apparent shifts in level of adjustment of kibbutz and city subjects, as well as the allegedly greater incidence of pathology in the kibbutz index group, are questioned on methodological grounds.