Gang Research Articles

Traumatic Outcomes of Girls’ Street Gang Exposure: Exploring the Role of Perpetrated Violence and Sexual Exploitation Victimization

Traumatic Outcomes of Girls’ Street Gang Exposure: Exploring the Role of Perpetrated Violence and Sexual Exploitation Victimization

Does the public support anti-gang policies and practices and can opinions be swayed? Experimental evidence from a National Survey of Americans

PurposeFor the last five decades, gangs have been a criminal justice priority, commanding the attention of police, courts, and corrections. Legislative bodies and local, state, and federal agencies have adapted or engineered policies and practices to combat the influence of gangs. While these efforts have been subject to inquiry by researchers and media, they have largely been uninformed by public opinion. MethodsWe surveyed 1000 adults in the United States to understand public support for five common yet controversial responses to gangs spearheaded by the criminal justice system. ResultsThere was a widespread consensus of support for police gang databases, civil gang injunctions, Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO), and sentencing enhancements, but not solitary confinement. Respondents were not swayed by the experimental presentation of evidence of racial disparities in gang databases or the psychological impacts of solitary confinement; support for civil gang injunctions fell when learning of potential constitutional violations but not violence reduction; support for RICO fell when learning of the organizational structure of street gangs and the potential for guilt-by-association; and sentencing enhancements were no longer supported upon learning the financial cost. ConclusionsPublic opinion maintains a significant role in criminal justice policy and practice on gangs that criminologists should subject to research and evaluation. This research underscores the importance of evidence-based policy formulation and the need for ongoing dialogue between the public, researchers, and policymakers to address challenges as complex and inexorable as gangs and gang violence in communities.

From a bad to good reputation: a case study illustrating the re-branding of a stigmatized neighbourhood in Sweden

AbstractNeighbourhoods with low social capital and bad reputations are becoming even more deprived, with increased homelessness, poverty and gang violence. In Sweden, and internationally, there is a need for knowledge of ways to stimulate positive regeneration of neighbourhoods with a bad reputation. This ethnographical case study explores regeneration factors in a neighbourhood that was transformed over 14 years from one with low social capital and a bad reputation to one with higher social capital and a good reputation. Three key factors in this positive regeneration and de-stigmatization process of a neighbourhood with an undesirable reputation were identified: the engagement of private sector actors with place branding and spatial anchorage skills; collaborative co-creation; and home-love with emotion-based building. The findings regarding this successful case highlight the importance of collaboration and including actors with re-branding skills when rewriting the narrative of a stigmatized neighbourhood.

A double standard in evaluating implicit threats

ABSTRACT The perceived acceptability of implicit threats, as a function of messenger type, was examined. Across two experiments, participants (79 undergraduates and 160 community members) read a news article about how a police officer or gang member used an implicit threat to obtain an admission of wrongdoing from a store owner. Participants then provided their opinions about the implied messages, the messenger, and the admissibility of the confession evidence, and were asked to render a verdict. Results showed that the implied threats were viewed more negatively when uttered by a gang member. Ratings of admissibility of the confession evidence were high in both groups and varied little between the groups. Our findings are indicative of a double standard in the justice system whereby the same implicit message is viewed differently depending on who utters the message. The potential implications of these findings on legal decision-making and future research are discussed.

Factors of juvenile gang culture in Bangladesh: An investigative study in Dhaka

Factors of juvenile gang culture in Bangladesh: An investigative study in Dhaka

Associations between childbirth, gang exposure and substance use among young women in Cape Town, South Africa

The prevalence and influence of gangs on adolescents and young adults remain a concern in Western Cape, South Africa—particularly as they have one of the largest gang presence. While less attention has been focused on young women, there is a need to elucidate the relationship between gang exposure and health behaviors, such substance use, in addition to understanding whether becoming a caregiver impacts this relationship. This study uses baseline data from 496 participants enrolled in a NIDA-funded R01 trial that recruited young women aged 16 to 19 who were out of school and reported recent alcohol or other drug use and sexual risk behavior. At enrollment, a risk behavior survey was administered, and urine drug screening was conducted. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine baseline associations between childbirth, a gang exposure index based on eight items, and positive drug screens of the most prevalent drugs in the Western Cape (marijuana, methaqualone, and methamphetamine). At enrollment, approximately 39% of the sample had a positive urine screen for marijuana, 17% for methaqualone, and 11% for methamphetamine. Additionally, 28% had ever given birth. While only 6% reported ever being a member of a gang, most reported exposure to gangs through their physical and social environments. For all three drugs, gang exposure was associated with statistically significantly higher odds of a positive screen. Every one-point increase in the gang exposure index was associated with a 31% increase in the odds of a positive marijuana screen (p < .001), a 26% increase for methaqualone (p = 0.005) and a 37% increase in the odds of a positive methamphetamine screen (p < .001). Ever given birth was associated with lower odds of marijuana use (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 0.63; 95% CI: 0.42–0.96), but it was not associated with methaqualone or methamphetamine use. The findings suggest that exposure to gangs through young women’s social and physical environment is positively associated with drug use. Childbirth was also protective for marijuana use, indicating there may be something unique about this type of drug, such as one’s ability to more easily stop use. Although very few young women reported gang membership, a majority reported some exposure, indicating the need to address how pervasive this exposure is and the potential risk.

Climate change, conflict, and urban migration

The adverse effects of man-made climate change and protracted conflict intensify rural-to-urban migration in many developing countries. This article examines the impacts of climate and conflict migration on urban environments and on migrants themselves. To trace the distinctive pathways by which climate change and conflict drive migration as well as shared challenges for urban planning and services, we employ qualitative case studies of Jordan, Pakistan, and Honduras informed by interviews and secondary literature. These countries are chosen as they exemplify the compounding, cumulative impacts of climate change and conflict on urban expansion and the challenges in providing adequate public services in these contexts. Across all three cases, climate hazards threaten rural livelihoods and agricultural productivity, increasing rural to urban migration, while civil conflict and gang violence further induce urban migration, both internally and across borders. In Jordan, we assess the impacts of increasing water scarcity and conflict-driven refugee flows on infrastructure and public services. Pakistan’s experience highlights the impacts of rapid-onset natural disasters, severe water scarcity, and enduring refugee flows from Afghanistan on environmental quality and pollution within cities. In Honduras, we analyze how increasing droughts and hurricanes, combined with gang presence in cities, affect migrants in terms of increased violence and negative physical and mental health impacts. Together, these cases illuminate the need for context-specific proactive policy measures that address the independent and interrelated ways that climate change and conflict lead to migration and the subsequent profound impacts on urban development and human well-being.

Focused deterrence, strategic management, and effective gun violence prevention

AbstractResearch SummaryThe evaluation literature suggests that focused deterrence strategies are effective in reducing gun violence. However, focused deterrence is notoriously difficult to implement and sustain. The history of focused deterrence implementation failure raises questions about its viability as a gun violence prevention strategy. Stockton, California, implemented focused deterrence three times during the past 25 years. In its most recent version, Stockton officials explicitly designed the strategy to be a permanent feature of the city's violence prevention portfolio. Although program caseloads diminished over the course of the COVID‐19 pandemic and the strategy faced leadership and resource challenges, Stockton's efforts prevented the program from being discontinued and, for those gang members who did receive treatment, delivered a robust gun violence prevention strategy. A quasi‐experimental evaluation shows that treated gang members were less likely to be shot and reduced their violent offending relative to similar untreated gang members. The focused deterrence impacts also appear to spill over to gang members who were socially connected to treated gang members. Although Stockton experienced an increase in homicides over the course of the COVID‐19 pandemic, the increase was not as steep as other comparable California cities.Policy ImplicationsFocused deterrence strategies can be effective responses to gun violence problems when implemented properly. A priori planning is essential when jurisdictions prepare to adopt focused deterrence. Strategic management actions, such as maintaining a robust network of partnering agencies, developing accountability structures and sustainability plans, and conducting upfront and ongoing problem analysis, are critical elements that must be in place for focused deterrence to be effective and sustainable.

‘You’re in or You’re out:’ Ethos of Change in the Lives of De-radicalized Youth in the Kenyan Urban Margins

Abstract Notoriously placed, ghettos and slums are perceived as locations for violence, drug abuse, violent gang operations, and other vices. In Kenya, the origin of violent radicalization and extremism has centered on urban margins, some of which are characterized as ghettos or slums due to the complex dynamics of communal interactions and spatial settings. This study draws on ethnographic data to analyze the lives of youth in two urban margins of Kenya whose lived realities were tied to their radicalization, deradicalization, engagement, and disengagement in violent extremism for the Al-Shabaab network. Using empirical data, the article probes the central research question: How do youth make meanings of violent radicalization, de-radicalization, engagement, and disengagement from their lived realities of these urban margins? A critical empirical assessment of this new ethos of change as a result of Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism (PCVE) and development actors’ work in these urban margins reveals a continuum of mixed reactions from ‘feeling good’ to ‘feeling worse’ as young people grapple with new identities, new stigmas, and new realities in reintegrating back into their communities.

Gangs and the Culture of Violence in El Salvador (What role did the US play?)

Gang violence in El Salvador has resulted in conditions that have perpetuated an environment of terror and culture of violence. This paper aims to understand the emergence of transnational gangs in El Salvador and the US involvement in this process. The article is divided into the following subtitles; 1980s civil war and the repercussions of US involvement, Salvadorans migration to the US and reverse migration (with a focus on Los Angeles and San Salvador), and US exportation of heavy-handed policies to El Salvador’s institutionalized use of political violence. The paper concludes that US involvement in El Salvador created a foundation for a culture of violence and through interlinked factors US influence and actions instigated circumstances for gang proliferated in El Salvador.

Examining gang membership and victimisation as predictors of gun violence perpetration: testing for interactive effects

ABSTRACT Research has indicated the relevance of gang membership and victimisation as risk factors for predicting the perpetration of gun violence. However, there is a dearth of research that has examined the potential that gang membership may moderate the impact of victimisation on gun violence perpetration. This study examined this prospect within a sample of justice-involved youth. The Pathways to Desistance dataset was analysed. Generalised estimating equations were used to test for direct and interactive effects of gang membership and victimisation while accounting for nested error corresponding to the repeated measures in this 11-wave longitudinal dataset. Results indicated that gang membership was associated with an increased risk of gun violence perpetration, but not victimisation. The hypothesised interaction effect was also nonsignificant.

Youth Gang Involvement and Long-Term Offending: An Examination into the Role of Psychopathic Traits

Most policies to combat gang criminal behavior are rooted in deterrence and punitive strategies. This is fueled by moral panic, a get tough on crime rhetoric, and a lack of understanding for the psychological factors that may influence this behavior. Further, the extant literature has consistently observed that gang membership is associated with increased criminal behavior. In an effort to promote and shift away from punitive approaches in response to gang delinquency, the current study investigates the role psychopathic traits have in violent and property offending, longitudinally, in a sample of gang-involved youth. The study implemented count mixed effect models to investigate the topic longitudinally in waves 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11, while controlling for other variables with violent and property offending frequency. The current study found that some psychopathic traits are associated with offending behavior, longitudinally, in gang members and youth with a history of gang involvement. The findings suggest that gang intervention strategies should include empirically supported programs for treating psychopathic traits in gang identified youth to reduce involvement in delinquent behavior. Further, practitioners, researchers, and policymakers should collaborate to develop more empirically supported strategies to reduce and prevent gang delinquent behavior from an empathetic lens.

Is ethnic and racial identity a potentiating or protective factor in the association between youth victimization and gang-joining? Distinguishing between exploration and affirmation

Youth gang membership is a significant public health concern linked to violent victimization. However, not all victimized youth join gangs, highlighting the need to study mitigating factors. Ethnic and racial identity (ERI) is a potential factor, but research has shown mixed results. This study used longitudinal self-report data from the Pathways to Desistance project to examine ERI’s two facets – exploration and affirmation. Findings revealed that victimization increased both ERI aspects, but they had opposite effects on gang-joining. Higher affirmation reduced gang-joining odds and higher exploration increased them. These results highlight the importance of promoting ERI affirmation in gang involvement prevention.

‘An amazing gang of women crooks and blackmailers’: women, organized crime, and the ‘Forty Elephants’ gang in inter-war Britain

Abstract Women’s participation in organized crime has been overlooked within historical research, with studies typically relegating their roles to that of auxiliaries to male gangsters. This article explores the activities and portrayals of women involved in organized crime during the British inter-war period, focusing specifically on one of Britain’s only known all-female criminal organizations (the ‘Forty Elephants’). Examining coverage from local, regional, and national newspapers, it argues that the Forty Elephants captivated the inter-war press, with depictions of gang members reflecting the stereotypical ‘devil in disguise’; according to the media, the female gangster was a dangerous and ‘professional’ criminal who hid behind a façade of good looks, fashionable clothing, and high social status. Furthermore, the article demonstrates how portrayals of the gang resonated with contemporary discussions around the emerging ‘modern woman’, reflecting concerns over women’s growing participation in social, political, and economic life.

Street Indoctrination

While a breadth of U.S. scholarship on gangs/gang violence exists, there is currently scant research about the psychological/indoctrination processes used to transform civilians into gang members, especially from a Canadian perspective. To address this gap in the literature this article draws on the military scholarship relating to intense indoctrination to (a) inform our understanding of how youth are psychologically transformed/indoctrinated into a street/gang life, (b) the psychological/traumatic impact of such indoctrination, and (c) the role street indoctrination plays in young people’s capacity to survive a gang life. This article draws on autoethnography to enable the author, a former gang/justice-involved person, to provide an up-close, reflexive, and intimate perspective into “street indoctrination.” Such a perspective is often missing from the extant gang scholarship as few formerly gang-involved persons are able to speak about their experiences from the privileged space of academia.

Unveiling the Digital Underworld – Exploring Cyberbanging and Recruitment of Canadian Street Gang Members on Social Media

This study explores the online behavior of Canadian street gang members on X (formerly known as “Twitter”), Facebook, and YouTube. As scholarly Western inquiries have predominantly focused on American and British street gangs, their presentation of online recruitment often differs. Law enforcement and journalists claim that street gangs have begun using social media platforms explicitly to search for and recruit new members. Certain scholarly publications have also suggested that a small minority of street gangs utilize social media to recruit new participants; however, they do not provide ample context to describe what this looks like online. Others argue that while cyberbanging – online gang content and propaganda – can be found online, some of this content can act as indirect recruitment, as it promotes gang lifestyles to the outside observer. To examine the use of cyberbanging and the indirect recruitment it inspires, the present study examines 59 social media user profiles linked to Canadian street gang members (23 Twitter users and 36 Facebook users), along with 10 YouTube rap videos produced by street gang members, to assess the online behavior of these particular social media users. The results suggest that the most prominent type of cyberbanging content is the promotion of gang ideologies, with a clear presence of indirect recruitment techniques observed, such as displaying drugs, weapons, money, and illegal gains, boasting of facets of gang lifestyles, and other propaganda. This content, while considered cyberbanging, blurs the line between content defined as cyberbanging and that of online recruitment.

Can the youth gang speak? A review of the limits and the consequences of mediation processes in Ecuador

ABSTRACT This article aims to analyse the agencies and forms of representation of young people who participated in mediation processes related to youth gangs in Ecuador. Since the beginning of the 21st mediation alternatives –in which different hegemonic sectors have intervened– have been rehearsed proposing different options to substitute violence suffered and exercised (as a response) by youth gangs from Ecuador. The research is grounded on interviews conducted between 2018 and 2023 with various actors that have participated and documented the processes and results of mediation. By reviewing the historical processes of inequality and colonialism, placed in dialogue with the empirical material, we discuss the consequences and limits of mediation processes.

The Transnational Mental Health Burden of Haiti's Alleged Collapse: Preliminary Findings from the Haitian Well-Being Study.

Transnational drug trafficking, political unrest, gang violence, and paramilitarism, which are pervasive in Haiti, have resulted in a mental health crisis for the broader Haitian community. This study explores the mental well-being of Haitians in Haiti and the United States by identifying barriers and facilitators to mental health through the lived experiences of men and women. Four Focus group discussions conducted in April and November 2023 engaged 28 participants (20 women and eight men) aged between 23 and 60 years from locations in Haiti (Port-au-Prince, Cite Soleil, Cayes, Cap-Haitien, Saint-Marc) and the United States. Discussions revolved around the definition of mental health, stressors, coping mechanisms, risk and protective factors, and barriers to mental health care. Six principal themes emerged: 1- Chronic Traumatic Stress: continued violence, political instability, unemployment, lack of social support, adverse childhood experiences, family separation, and forced displacement were significant sources of stress. 2- Increased Health Burden: Participants reported experiencing chronic physical and psychological symptoms (i.e., hypertension, anxiety, depression, sleep issues, substance abuse, suicidal ideations, characteristics of post-traumatic stress disorder [PTSD]), which were attributed to Haiti's social, political, and infrastructure collapse. 3- Risk Factors: limited access to mental health services, pervasive hopelessness, scarcity of opportunities, and stigma were identified as significant risks. 4- Future Uncertainty: widespread concerns regarding the future predominated. 5- Multigenerational Concerns: Significant anxiety concerning the mental health and development of children, as well as the functionality of mental health practitioners, was noted. 6- Coping and Protective Factors: Effective coping strategies include mental stimulation, peer support, managing digital consumption, engaging in leisurely activities, such as listening to music, and faith/spirituality. The study's findings underscore the sociopolitical and economic crisis in Haiti, which has resulted in violence and a collapse of political, educational, financial, and health infrastructures. These factors were identified as the primary source of chronic distress, contributing to widespread mental health issues, adverse physical symptoms, and disruption in daily life. The implications for practice, healing, research & policy are discussed.

‘Black dealers kill people and come from the projects; Whites dealers kill people and come from nice families’: contextualized racialized perceptions of related criminal behaviors within an attribution theory framework

ABSTRACT Some believe certain racial groups are associated with specific behaviors, like homicide, drug dealing, and drug use. It is unclear if these perceptions are connected or if culpability as offender or victim for these behaviors is also racialized. The present study examines perceptions of people’s involvement in these related criminal behaviors. Using semi-structured interviews, data were gathered from men and women (n=32) living in 15 contiguous neighborhoods in a mid-sized city in the northeastern US. All study area neighborhoods experienced the effects of the opioid epidemic and repercussions of subsidized public housing policy changes, and some had high levels of violent and drug crimes. Interview data were analyzed using thematic content analysis applying iterative, open coding techniques to identify themes and recurrent concepts across participants. Findings show that respondents viewed Black persons engaged in homicides and drug dealers as offenders and white persons engaged in drug use as victims. Crimes attributed to Black people were also contextualized as a problem among gang members and people receiving subsidized public housing. Applying the racial threat hypothesis, study findings and implications for research on racialized perceptions of related criminal behaviors and culpability as offenders or victims are discussed within an attribution theory framework.

Inequalities in the Cape Flats: Principals’ perspectives on children’s schooling

Background: A separate, apartheid system of schooling in South Africa entrenched European racialised ideologies of white supremacy that left a legacy of social, economic, and educational inequalities. The 1995 White Paper for Education, the 1996 South African Schools Act, and the Revised National Curriculum Statement outlined steps for equalising education. However, inequalities within the schooling system remain.Aim: The study aimed to understand how principals experience the lasting effects of apartheid-era segregationist policies in primary schools and to document principals’ solutions.Setting: A meeting of principals who work at primary schools in the Western Cape province.Methods: Researchers purposively sampled four principals from the primary schools represented at the meeting, conducted semi-structured interviews with the principals chosen, and adopted an interpretive approach to analyse findings.Results: This study finds from principals’ perspectives that neighbourhood gang violence, and highly unequal funding for schools in different neighbourhoods adversely impact primary school children’s education and principals’ abilities to lead as a result of context, overcrowding and inequality. Principals note that when parent-led programmes such as the Walking Bus produce a positive effect, the government tends to undercut parents’ efforts to work with principals to secure and equalise young children’s schooling.Conclusion: Giving greater governance power to parents and principals may help to equalise the extremes of inequalities in primary schools remaining from Nationalist Party policies of the pre-1994 apartheid era.Contribution: This study contributes to primary school principals’ ideas for improving primary schoolchildren’s education.