Cross-cultural concepts of reality are related to the development and the threshold of hallucinations. Attitudes toward hallucinations tend to affect the emotional reaction to, and the degree of control of, these experiences. Awareness of these attitudes may help the diagnostician to distinguish between pathological and culturally sanctioned hallucinations. It is important that therapists consider the functional significance and meaning of hallucinations as well as the social context and the stimuli associated with them.

The main aim of this article is to review research and observations on the association between cultural factors and the rates and symptoms of mental illness in Algeria. In addition to traditional concepts and practices, modern psychiatric services and the classification of mental illness are discussed. Research on depression, schizophrenia, drug-abuse and alcoholism are reported. Two major sociocultural factors related to mental illness are emphasised: the Muslim religion and social changes during both the colonial and post-colonial eras. Many culture-specific family stresses are also related to mental illness.

A review of clinical and anthropological studies shows that social and cultural factors affect both the definition of, and the sensory systems involved in, hallucinations. It appears that the pejorative labeling of certain reported experiences as hallucinatory is dependent on linguistic factors as well as social and cultural beliefs (e.g., the consideration of hallucinations as an index of social maturity, social competence, and social conformity). It is pointed out that the degree of rationality in the culture is associated with attitudes, emotional response, and the attribution of pathology to hallucinatory experiences. The implications of social and cultural factors for the behavioral and psychoanalytical approaches to hallucinations are also discussed.Recently there has been an increasing interest in the study of mental imagery in general and in hallucinations in particular

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In recent years there has been a wide interest in the cross-cultural aspects of mental illness. Information concerning incidence, symptomatology and attitudes towards mental illness in the developing countries may contribute to the understanding of psychological processes and psychiatric problems. Kline (1963) reported a number of surveys of psychiatry in non-Western countries. One of these surveys was conducted in Kuwait, which is culturally and geographically intimately related to Iraq. This study aims at adding to Kline's data by providing information about various facets of psychiatry in Iraq. The present data were collected through interviews with a number of practising psychiatrists and through reference to hospital statistics and other relevant literature, in addition to the authors' clinical experience.