Psychology in Guatemala, some of its history and present

Abstract

One in four people aged 18 to 65 years in Guatemala, suffers or have ever suffered in his life a mental disorder. Mental health care is a real challenge in this country, especially when less than 1% of the national health budget is allocated for it. However, Guatemala has made important advances in human resource training and practice of psychology. The country has fourteen universities, thirteen are private and one is public, and eleven of them have a psychology program. This offers the possibility of training through technical and professional programs, both at an  undergraduate and a specialization level. The trade union organization has been  developed through professional associations and recently, in 2007, with the  establishment of the Guatemala’s Official College of  Psychologists. Currently, psychologists make contributions from different areas, beyond the private practice and academia, as traditionally has been done. Still, there are important challenges and gaps to be addressed, such as research development, improving the quality of academic education and social projection to those sectors in most vulnerable conditions.