The Conception of Psychologists on the Rural in Social Policies

Social policies constitute a significant work field for psychology in contemporaneity and have contributed to approximate psychologists to the rural. Therefore, the present article aims to the conceptions of six psychologists working in social policies in a rural context, through a qualitative study in three small cities in Piauí. Data collection followed a participant-observation approach, using field diary, informal conversations, and semi-structured interviews. Results showed that the psychologists conceive rural mainly as a physical space, deprived and separated from the urban context. Moreover, the research showed that the more recent insertion of psychologists in this context brought some challenges to the profession regarding the complexity of rural Brazil. Therefore, it is necessary for psychologists to take ownership of theoretical and critical discussions about the rural as a category of thinking and composed by opportunities and diversity; in such way, it will be possible to qualify psychologists’ understandings, approaches, and insertions in this field.

Keywords: Psychologists, social policies, rural.