Experience Report: Reading Group at the Public Prison of Porto Alegre

Abstract

This experience report presents an intervention carried out at the Public Prison of Porto Alegre to complete the basic mandatory internship of the psychology degree and aims to inspire the possibilities for psychologists to work in prison contexts. The internship took place throughout 2022 and, after a first semester of observation and monitoring of services provided by psychology professionals, a reading and reflection group was proposed and carried out as an intervention project, using brazilian short stories. The opportunity to undertake an internship in a prison institution allowed us to learn about some of the challenges of practicing psychology in this type of context and highlighted the need to always revisit the code of ethics and the profession's guidelines, remaining aware of the historical and cultural context. The group was held with five participants and had seven meetings, allowing people to experience the power of spaces for reflection and creativity that promote the acceptance of different types of knowledge in a space of many deprivations.