Work, support and solitude: prisoners’ desistance expectations and self-regulating strategies

Abstract This article explores how prisoners plan to achieve desistance from crime. In many respects, prisoners have poor prospects upon their release. A prisoner’s chances of reintegration can be hindered by conditions such as structural barriers, lack of social support, and the after-effects of imprisonment. Using qualitative interviews with prisoners (N = 45) who were serving at open low-security prisons in Finland, this analysis demonstrates that the majority of the prisoners had optimistic expectations and devised concrete plans for desistance. To achieve this desired change, the prisoners intended to use three self-regulating strategies; to secure employment or another daily routine, to seek help from others, and to shift surroundings. Even if work, support, and solitude are viable strategies for achieving desistance from crime, this article recognizes the risk of these self-regulating strategies failing due to inherent uncertainties and weak implementation intentions.