db week5

Peers and Gangs

Agnew (16)

Impact of Delinquent Peers

How do delinquent peers impact delinquency?

Delinquent Friends

Typically strongest correlate of delinquency

1. association due to several causal effects

delinquent peers CAUSE delinquency

third variables cause both

delinquency CAUSES delinquent peers

2. Elliott and Menard’s study shows common pattern of progression

3. delinquent peers and delinquent acts reciprocally related to one another

Conditional Effects of Friends

The following conditions strengthen the impact of delinquent peers on delinquency

1. all friends are delinquent

2. friends form cohesive group

3. adolescent likes friends and spends a lot of time with them

4. friends hold beliefs conducive to delinquency, approve of adolescent’s delinquency, and pressure adolescent to engage in delinquency

5. effects explained by social learning theory

Delinquent Peer Groups

1. types of delinquency

most commit minor delinquent acts on an occasional basis

some commit more frequent and serious delinquent acts

2. size and composition

offending groups are groups that actually commit delinquent acts

typical size is two to four juveniles

usually commit offenses with different members of larger groups

accomplice networks are pool of potential co-offenders

average size is about seven juveniles

delinquent youths have larger networks

3. group members typically similar in age and sex

most are male

peak at ages 15 to 18

females more likely to be part of mixed-sex groups

4. instigators and followers

instigators are same age or a little older than other group members

females are more likely to follow male instigators than males are to follow female instigators

juvenile may be instigator with one set of friends and follower with another group of friends

5. quality of relations between group members

similar to those found in conventional peer groups

more likely to report getting into conflicts with one another

Explaining the Effect

What explains the effect of delinquent peers on delinquency?

Reasons for Involvement

Why do juveniles get involved with delinquent peers?

1. individual traits of irritability and low self-control

increase likelihood of rejection by conventional peer groups

strong need for thrill and excitement more attracted to activities of delinquent groups

2. family variables that promote delinquency increase likelihood of association with delinquent peer groups

3. negative school experiences increase likelihood of association with delinquent peer groups

4. living in deprived, inner-city communities increases likelihood of becoming involved with delinquent peers

5. delinquent behavior itself increases likelihood of association with delinquent peers

prefer delinquent peers

rejected by conventional peers

Gangs

Gangs differ greatly from one another

1. some are large, highly organized, and heavily involved in drug sales

2. others small, loosely organized, and have little or no involvement in drug sales

Various definitions of a street gang

1. Klein defines a gang as an “identifiable group of youngsters” with certain characteristics

perceived as a distinct aggregation by others in the neighborhood

recognize themselves as a distinct group

involved in a sufficient number of delinquent acts to elicit negative responses from residents and/or law enforcement officials

2. alternative definitions

protect territories or turfs

formal organizational structures

3. Defined as “a durable, street-oriented youth group whose involvement in illegal activity is part of its group identity”

Extent of Gangs in US

1. National Youth Gang Center survey

gangs present in 80 percent of cities with populations of more than 50,000

24,000 gangs with 760,000 gang members in 2004

2. self-report studies for United states as whole

2 percent of adolescents belong to gangs in a given year

5 percent belong to gangs at some point during adolescence

3. self-report studies of urban youth in Denver and Rochester

5 to 15 percent of adolescents belong to gangs in a given year

8 to 30 percent belong to gangs at some point during adolescence

4. gang activity declined from 1996 to 2002, especially in smaller areas

Trends in the United States

dramatic increase from the 1970s to the mid-1990s

decline from 1996 to 2002, especially in smaller areas

slight increase since 2002

Effect of Gangs on Crime/ Delinq.

Gang members commit substantial share of all delinquency in certain cities

1. disproportionate involvement in serious and violent delinquency

2. lethal violence more likely among gang members

more than half of all homicides in Los Angeles and Chicago in 2002 were gang related

gang members more likely to own, carry, and use guns

Dispelling myths associated with gang crime

1. gang members do not spend most of their time engaged in crime

2. street gangs do not control drug sales in the United States

3. victims of gangs are infrequently innocent bystanders

4. street gangs are not all alike

social gangs

party gangs

serious delinquent gangs

organization gangs

Explaining the causal relationship between gang membership and delinquency

1. delinquent individuals are more likely to join gangs

2. gang membership and delinquency are caused by many of same third variables

3. gang membership causes delinquency—individuals increase delinquency after joining gangs and decrease delinquency upon leaving gangs

Describing gang members and gang structure

Characteristics of Gang Members

poor and live in lower-income, urban communities

predominantly male

Young— 15-year-olds have highest rates of participation

belong to minority groups

Organization & structure

1. some are highly organized, with a well-defined structure

2. most are loosely organized

distinction between core members and fringe members

divided into informal cliques or subgroups

few well-defined goals or rules

membership changes frequently over time

often bound together through conflict with external groups rather than through internal cohesion

Females and Gangs

Female gangs

1. three types

mixed sex

female gangs affiliated with male gangs

independent female gangs

2. female members

exercise good deal of control over their own affairs

members engage in wide range of delinquent acts

less delinquent than male members

3. reasons for joining gangs

similar to reasons males join gangs

problems with special relevance to female gang members

experience problems like abuse at home

seek partial escape from gender oppression they encounter or anticipate encountering in the future

Joining/ Leaving

Joining and leaving gangs

1. reasons for joining gangs

socialize with friends, have fun, and receive support and companionship

desire for positive identity and status

security or protection from others

financial gain

2. initiation ceremony when decide to join

3. most gang members leave within a year

witness death or injury of a friend

direct victim of violence

sent to a correctional institution

get a job, have children, or get married

gang itself breaks up

mature out with age

Theory and Gangs

Theoretical explanations for joining gangs

1. way to cope with strain

cannot acquire enough money or gain status/respect through legitimate means

neglected or abused by family members

harassed by others in school or community

find their lives dull and boring

2. conditioning variables that increase likelihood for juveniles to join gangs

friends are gang members

live in communities where gang members are respected and reinforced for gang membership

low in direct control and have low stake in conformity

Why in inner cities?

Explaining why gangs often develop in deprived, inner-city communities

1. lower in control

few community resources

high rates of residential mobility

2. experience much strain

trouble achieving monetary and status goals through legitimate channels

juveniles often treated in negative manner by others

3. conflict with others triggering factor that turns juveniles into gangs

4. juveniles may form gangs in response to media portrayals of gang life

Trends in Gangs

1. increases since the 1970s

dramatic increase in number of high-poverty neighborhoods and the number of people living in such increases since the 1970s

dramatic increase in number of high-poverty neighborhoods and the number of people living in such neighborhoods

spread to working-class and middle-class communities

increase in youth violence from late 1980s to mid-1990s

media and manufacturers provide gang models to imitate

2. explaining stabilization and decline in gangs from the mid 1990s to 2002

strong economy

decline in high-poverty communities

decline in youth violence