Mental health services and the emerging role of psychology in Greece.

Abstract

Mental health services are in little demand in Greece. Those resources that do exist are centralized in large cities, and few psychologists are involved. The majority of persons requesting help receive pharmaceutical treatments. Psychotherapy and counseling are rare. However, psychology is rapidly emerging as a science/profession in Greece. Licensure, recently established, is required of most academic psychologists, who are expected to practice as well as teach and do research. All Greek PhD psychologists have been trained abroad, because there are no total graduate training programs within Greece as yet. This multicultural education provides opportunity for broader theoretical perspectives, as well as creating difficulties in establishing standards for practice. Current increasing demand for psychological services may result in needed support for training programs within Greece.

International Community Psychology

“…Unfortunately, her innovative initiatives did not lay the inroads for the development of the discipline of school psychology and the community services that could be offered by professionals specializing in this field. On the contrary, the barriers that have thwarted this development were many, including social-political upheaval, 1 the lack of licensing laws for psychologists until recently (Bouhoutsos & Roe, 1984;Nikolopoulou & Oakland, 1990;Theodore et al, 2002), the lack of specialization within psychology, weak social and political status of scientific and professional psychology, an 'entrenched' and inflexible educational system (Nikolopoulou & Oakland, 1990), the emulation and replication of the American 'School Psychology' within a very different cultural, systemic, political, and professional context (Theodore et al, 2002), and a lack of application of comprehensive mode that takes into consideration the cultural, organizational, and ethnic determinants of how services are delivered within the schools (Hatzichristou, 2003).…”

The State of Psychology in Catalonia*

“…Cognizant of deficiencies found in the training of psychologists in many European nations (Ardila 1982;Bouhoutsos and Roe 1984;McPherson 1986;Abeles 1987) as well as in Spain (Godoy 1987), the three universities of Catalonia have striven to develop a comprehensive undergraduate curriculum reminiscent of the American model of core class/laboratory requirements, augmented by specialization in the form of further class work and practicums. Table 1 presents the current undergraduate cumculum in psychology at the University of Barcelona.…”

The relationship between attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help, religious orientation, and Greek Orthodox religiosity

“…Either the patients were released to their families, or , if families refused to sign for their release, it was not uncommon for such patients to remain in the hospital for the rest of their lives, recovered yet unable to be released (Hartocollis, 1966, p. 459). Bouhoutsos and Roe (1984) pointed out that although the increased urbanization among…”

“…The families were forced to face the problem due to the severity of the illness. Other forms of less disruptive mental illnesses were hidden away or were managed in an atmosphere of denial of the existence of a problem (Bouhoutsos & Roe, 1984).…”

“…In addition to stigma, or perhaps as a reflection of it, the way that mental health services were available tended to discourage people from seeking psychological help. Bouhoutsos and Roe (1984) stated that 98% of the outpatient offices were found in governmental offices of the social security services (IKA). The services provided at such offices consisted mainly of psychopharmacological interventions.…”