Gang Membership: The Psychological Evidence

Alleyne, Emma; Wood, Jane L.

doi:10.1007/978-1-4614-1659-3_9

Cited by 21 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 96 publications

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“…Esbensen and Weerman (2005) used roughly comparable samples and measures to conclude that the same characteristicshere representing self-control, social learning and social control theories -significantly distinguished gang joiners from non-joiners in the USA and the Netherlands (see also Weerman, 2012, for confirmation of risk patterns for girls). These patterns are corroborated in analyses of gang and non-gang youth in London (Alleyne and Wood, 2012), Edinburgh (Bradshaw, 2005;McVie, 2010) and elsewhere in the United Kingdom (Bennett and Holloway, 2004;Sharp et al, 2006), in several different cities in Belgium (Pauwels and Svensson, 2013;Pauwels et al, 2011;Vettenburg et al, 2013) and in Copenhagen (Pedersen and Lindstad, 2012). Using the same, multi-country data set from which our analyses are derived, reports several correlates with gang membership that resonate with North American studies.…”

Section: Gang Correlates or Risk Factors: Conceptualization And Priorsupporting

confidence: 82%

“…This observation, drawn primarily from studies in North America, is corroborated in a London sample (Alleyne and Wood, 2012), in northern China (Pyrooz and Decker, 2012) and in the Caribbean (Katz and Fox, 2010). Interestingly, Esbensen and colleagues (2009) identify two tipping points in gang risk factor accumulation in a study sample drawn from 11 US cities.…”

Section: Gang Correlates or Risk Factors: Conceptualization And Priormentioning

confidence: 68%

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Street gang participation in Europe: A comparison of correlates

Haymoz¹,

Maxson

Killias

2013

European Journal of Criminology

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The literature on risk factors for joining street gangs has relied mainly on surveys of US youth. This article addresses the consistency of correlates of street gang involvement in several European countries. We utilize self-report surveys of middle school students in 19 European countries. We employ the Eurogang definition of gang membership and address the degree to which risk indicators from multiple ecological domains surface with some regularity across these different country contexts. Delinquent offending and negative peer behaviours emerge as the most influential and consistent correlates of gang involvement. We consider the implications of our findings for revealing a generalizable pattern of gang participation among European youth as well as the theoretical implications of the significant gang correlates.

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Section: Gang Correlates or Risk Factors: Conceptualization And Priorsupporting

confidence: 82%

Section: Gang Correlates or Risk Factors: Conceptualization And Priormentioning

confidence: 68%

Street gang participation in Europe: A comparison of correlates

Haymoz¹,

Maxson

Killias

2013

European Journal of Criminology

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“…Gangs are generally formed and maintained by members' shared experience of alienation from traditional society [39], and offer a strong sense of community [40]. Similarly, the format in which our intervention is delivered could offer young men with a history of gang membership a network of social support, through which they develop a collective identity and establish a sense of belonging [41]. This finding has important implications, as it clearly demonstrates that interventions that are delivered in a group-setting and employ regular (twice weekly) soccer practices over a 6 month period for young men in low resource communities can be used to reach vulnerable and at-risk groups.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Who can we reach and who can we keep? Predictors of intervention engagement and adherence in a cluster randomized controlled trial in South Africa

et al. 2020

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Background: Engaging and retaining young men in community-based interventions is highly challenging. The purpose of this study was to investigate the individual factors that predict intervention engagement and adherence in a sample of at-risk South African men. Methods: Baseline data were collected as a part of a cluster randomised control trial (RCT) situated in Khayelitsha and Mfuleni, two peri-urban settlements situated on the outskirts of Cape Town, South Africa. Neighbourhoods were randomised to one of three intervention conditions. We performed univariate descriptive statistics to report neighbourhood and individual socio-demographic factors, and ran multivariate models, adjusting for entry of study, to determine if high adherence and consistency of engagement with the intervention were associated with sociobehavioural demographics and risk behaviours, such as hazardous substance use, gangsterism, and criminal activity. Results: Total of 729 men were on average 22.5 years old (SD 2.8), with a mean of 10 years of education. More than half of the sample were single (94%), lived with their parents (66%) and had an income below~$30 (52%). The overall mean of adherence is 0.41 (SD 0.24) and mean of consistency of engagement is 0.61 (SD 0.30). Our data indicated that completing more years of education, living with parents, and having higher socioeconomic status were significantly associated with higher rates of engagement and adherence. Men with a history of gang membership demonstrated higher levels of adherence and consistent engagement with the intervention, compared with other men who were recruited to the intervention. Crucially, our data show that young men with a history of substance use, and young men who report symptoms of depression and high levels of perceived stress are equally likely as other young men to adhere to the intervention and attend intervention sessions consistently. Conclusion: Our results may contribute to a better understanding of young men's patterns of engagement and adherence to public health interventions. The results may have important implications for policy and practice, as they may be useful in planning more effective interventions and could potentially be used to predict which young men can be reached through community-based interventions.

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“…Recent empirical work has identified individual-level profiles and motivations and grouplevel structures and processes in London, specifically, that share more in common with the US than the rest of the UK (Alleyne & Wood, 2012;Densley, 2014;Harding 2014;Pitts, 2008).…”

Section: Growing Against Gangs and Violence (Gagv)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Growing against gangs and violence: Findings from a process and outcome evaluation.

Densley

Adler²,

Zhu

et al. 2017

Psychology of Violence

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The present study assesses program efficacy of Growing Against Gangs and Violence (GAGV), a primary prevention partnership with the U.K. Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), delivered in London schools with the aim of reducing gang involvement, delinquency, and violent offending and improving young people's confidence in police. GAGV is partially derived from an American program, Gangs Resistance Education and Training (GREAT). Method: A qualitative process evaluation and randomized control trial (RCT) outcomes study were undertaken. Results: Findings indicate GAGV personnel were keen to enhance program fidelity and process implementation. The RCT did not demonstrate a statistically significant program effect. However, effect sizes (ESs) indicate the program was effective in reducing levels of gang membership and the frequency and variety of delinquency and violence in the short-and longer term. More robust evidence indicated GAGV also improved students' attitudes toward police and reduced their adherence toward street code. Conclusions: The use of cohort-(not individual-) level data and missing data in the 1-year follow-up make it difficult to draw reliable and robust conclusions. However, results are encouraging. Several recommendations are suggested for GAGV, including curriculum design, regular evaluations, and expanding to include more schools. Limitations of this and similar evaluations also are discussed.

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Gang Membership: The Psychological Evidence

Cited by 21 publications

References 96 publications

Street gang participation in Europe: A comparison of correlates

Street gang participation in Europe: A comparison of correlates

Who can we reach and who can we keep? Predictors of intervention engagement and adherence in a cluster randomized controlled trial in South Africa

Growing against gangs and violence: Findings from a process and outcome evaluation.

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