Weibo Zhang,1,2,* Siyuan He,1,* Liam Wilson,3 Astrid Foix-Colonier,4 Maud Pacou,4 Youwei Zhu,1 Yi Zhu,1 Lili Xue,1 Yanfeng Wang,1 Junmei Li,1 Yanli Liu,1 Jun Cai1,2 1Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 2Mental Health Branch, China Hospital Development Institute, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 3Amaris Consulting, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 4Amaris Consulting, Paris, France*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Jun Cai, Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 600 Wan Ping Nan Road, Shanghai, 200030, People’s Republic of China, Email caijun533@163.comPurpose: This study aimed to quantify the preferences of Chinese patients with schizophrenia and their caregivers for antipsychotic treatment.Patients and Methods: Patients with schizophrenia (aged 18– 35) and their caregivers were recruited via six outpatient mental health clinics in Shanghai, People’s Republic of China. In a discrete choice experiment (DCE), participants chose between two hypothetical treatment scenarios that varied regarding the type of treatment, rate of hospitalization, severity of positive symptoms, treatment cost and rates of improvement in daily and social functioning. Data for each group were analyzed using the modelling approach that yielded the lower deviance information criterion. The relative importance score (RIS) for each treatment attribute was also determined.Results: A total of 162 patients and 167 caregivers participated. Frequency of hospital admission was the most important treatment attribute for patients (average scaled RIS=27%), followed by mode and frequency of treatment administration (24%). Improvement in ability to carry out daily activities (8%) and improvement in social functioning (8%) were least important. Patients in full-time employment placed more importance on the frequency of hospital admission than unemployed patients (p< 0.01). Frequency of hospital admission was also the most important attribute for caregivers (RIS=33%), followed by improvement in positive symptoms (20%), while improvement in daily activities (7%) was the least important.Conclusion: Patients with Schizophrenia in China prefer treatments that help reduce the number of times they are admitted to hospital, as do their caregivers. These results may bring insight for physicians and health authorities in China regarding the treatment characteristics that patients value the most.Keywords: conjoint analysis, discrete choice experiment, schizophrenia, preference study, patients, caregivers