Needs, interests, values of prisoners and their role in shaping subculture
https://doi.org/10.26425/1816-4277-2026-4-275-284
Abstract
This article analyzes the needs, interests, and values of prisoners as psychological determinants of the formation and reproduction of a prison subculture. The aim of the study is to identify how the isolation conditions and informal norms of the penitentiary medium transform the motivational sphere of prisoners and consolidate subcultural attitudes, which affect behavior and life prospects.
The methodology includes a theoretical and analytical review of Russian research in penitentiary psychology and criminology, a content analysis of scientific sources, and a secondary analysis of published empirical data. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs serves as an interpretive framework. In prison, the needs for security, belonging, and status acquire particular significance. The satisfaction of these needs is often mediated by informal hierarchy, group norms, and sanctions, forming stable strategies of conformity to the subculture. Authors generalizе data on the value orientations of prisoners (family, work, financial security, education, housing prospects) and their relationship to age, gender, and the serves of their sentence.
The results of the study among young people show the differences in life plans between subculture oriented and not. The first more often demonstrate a distrust of legal integration strategies. The second choose
Work, education, and social reconnection. The practical significance connects with the justification of preventive and corrective measures that consider the motivations and values of prisoners to improve the effectiveness of resocialization and reduce recidivism.
About the Authors
M. V. Iontseva
State University of Management
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Maria V. Iontseva - Dr. Sci. (Psy.), Assoc., Prof. at the Sociology, Management Psychology and History Department
Moscow
Ya. V. Scherbakova
State University of Management
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Yana V. Scherbakova - Senior Lecturer at the Department of Human Resource Management
Moscow
O. S. Dzhumabaev
State University of Management
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Otabek S. Dzhumabaev - Postgraduate Student
Moscow
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Review
For citations:
Iontseva M.V., Scherbakova Ya.V., Dzhumabaev O.S. Needs, interests, values of prisoners and their role in shaping subculture. Vestnik Universiteta. 2026;(4):275-284. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.26425/1816-4277-2026-4-275-284
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