Saints, Scholars, and Schizophrenics is the ethnographic study of a small town of An Cloch'an on the Dingle Peninsula in Ireland. Nancy Scheper-Hughes lived in this small village to understand why there were such a high number of schizophrenia cases in Ireland and also why such a high percentage were unmarried males. He wanted to explore the question of why these individuals were so prone to schizophrenia and what cultural factors caused these high rates. Scheper-Hughes interviewed both people from the village but also patients from the nearby psychiatric institution. He relied heavily on thematic apperception tests and interviews for his conclusions. He found that several cultural factors create an environment for high rates of schizophrenia. Economic conditions at the time of Scheper-Hughes' visit were grim. The loss of numerous social institutions, such as schools and churches, has negatively affected the morals of these rural communities (lecture). Initiatives by the Irish Department of Lands to force farmers into early retirement and land purchased by agricultural capitalists also caused changes in traditional agricultural life (Scheper-Hughes 107-108). With this initiative there was less emphasis on agriculture and land ownership became more of a symbol of past traditions (Scheper-Hughes 104). In Ireland there is a large social stigma attached to those diagnosed with schizophrenia. Conformity is highly valued and reserved behavior is always expected (Scheper-Hughes 157). Schizophrenia is seen as a chronic, lifelong condition, as those diagnosed with it must take medications for the rest of their lives (Scheper-Hughes 166). Labeling theory explains these stigmas as being used for “community definitions of normal and abnormal behavior, patterns of variation...... middle of paper ...... and social stigmas to demonstrate that while affected patients from schizophrenia can be biologically predetermined, there are a number of social constructs that bring out schizophrenic symptoms. He concluded that economic hardship, mass emigration from rural villages and loss of traditional agricultural lifestyle are reasons for schizophrenia. Twenty years later Scheper-Hughes returned to An Cloch'an, and cultural changes such as booming tourism, rising incomes, and less emphasis on traditional agriculture changed the thought patterns and socialization of individuals within the community. Today there are fewer cases of schizophrenia among the citizens of An Cloch'an, which proved that Scheper-Hughes' theories of socialization and social stigma were the reasons for the high rates of schizophrenia when he began his research (Scheper-Hughes 27).