Algeria

French colonial occupation (from 1830 to 1962) profoundly influenced the development of psychiatry in Algeria, both structurally and ideologically. In 1930 a large-scale plan was launched to create psychiatric settings out of nothing. Psychiatric departments were opened in general hospitals for acute patients (called first-line services) and the building was begun of large psychiatric hospitals for long-stay patients (called second-line services). They were run according to the 1838 French mental health law. A hasty mass departure of French psychiatrists and nurses in 1962 left hospitals devoid of human resources to care for thousands of patients with mental illness and to handle the psychological consequences of a seven-year bloody war for independence (Benmebarek, 2017).

Besides, In 1960s, Algeria had one university (The University of Algiers) which the psychology was an elective complementary subject taught in medicine programs. In 1970s, psychology was taught not as an elective course, but as a totally independent branch with three major specialties: educational, industrial and clinical psychology. In addition, In 1960s,  there were no Algerian psychologists who were specialized in psychology and who can practice it. Actually the practice of psychology at a large scale started in the 1970s (Mebarki, 2018). Graduated psychologists practiced psychology in different institutions such as schools, industrial companies, clinics, hospitals and other socio medical centres.