Why Youth Join Gangs

Improved Essays
Show More
Youth gangs is an interesting topic to be explored, particularly the influence on why youth feel compelled to join gangs. To provide a generalized concept of how youth gangs in this essay, it will be used in broad terms of persons aged twenty-five and younger and group engaged in unlawful behavior (Esbensen, Ni He, and Taylor 2001:106). Based on peer-reviewed research youth join gangs because of parental, school and peer influences. A prominent force that invites youth to join gangs is parental influences. Research has shown parent relationships and family structure to have a key role: a questionnaire answered by youth in a public high school in different states in America (Esbensen et al. 2001:112-13) presented a comparison of youth in and …show more content…
2014: 205) thus, if youth in gangs are living in these circumstances (ie. Single parents, uneducated parents, less parental monitoring) it presents parent(s) under these circumstances are unlikely to be able to nurture and teach good behavior (Esbensen et al. 2001:120) and good ethic (Taylor et al. 2008: 1451) due to work and income restraints as an example. Consequently then, youth will be more likely to develop anti-social and delinquent behavior (Howell and Egley 2005: 337). Therefore, ones with fewer restraints and more opportunities can lead them to join a gang and this follows to the influence of …show more content…
The causation of behavior can be assumed from parental influence and the correlation is it reflects the child in their school performance: school attachment, low academic inspirations and achievements (Howell and Taylor 2005: 339) because youth do not feel empowered to do so under the circumstances of built up risk factors that contribute to this issues of youth joining gangs. All in all, socialization of schools opens up doors for prospective youth gang members to meet other deviant peers (Howell and Taylor 2005: 341).
Lastly, the final influence of peers incorporates the effects of parental and school, as youth involved with delinquent peers has shown in research the likelihood of joining a youth gang (Gilman et al. 2014: 212). Research done by Gilman et al. (2005) in a longitudinal study, which looks at gang membership in a time frame under social influences reveals youth in pro-social environments are less likely to join a gang compared to anti-social environments under conditions such as family and school (P.215) which than impacts the influence peers have in

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Always Running By Luis Rodriguez: An Analysis
    • 887 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Always Running By Luis Rodriguez: An Analysis

    Poor Parenting Leads Towards Children Joining Gangs While reading the novel, Always Running by Luis Rodriguez, I found a key reason why children are more prone to joining gangs than others. Luis Rodriguez writes how and why he joined at an early age and how that impacted who he became later on in life. In another article, Poor Parenting Causes Some Children to Join Gangs by Lewis Yablonsky, he states that children who were raised in dysfunctional homes, are more likely to participate in gang violence. From the moment we are placed into our mothers or fathers awaiting arms, we are influenced by everything and everyone around us. Even if we don’t recall the details as an infant, the actions and the feelings that surround us, form us into who…

    • 887 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Aboriginal Youth Gangs Research Paper
    • 555 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Aboriginal Youth Gangs Research Paper

    The most common definition of a youth gang involves self-formed group of young teens imbedded within a structured organization. The group is distinctly recognizable by those in their community, tend to have a name, and have a negative association with crime (Klein 1971). The group adheres to a strict agenda and often partakes in criminal behavior to reach a set of goals outlined within the guidelines (Thrasher 1927). Additionally, as determined, youth gang activity is contingent on an individual’s socio-economic status, race, and neighborhood (Klein 1971). However, given that such factors are never standard across all communities, it becomes difficult to place every individual into a standardized definition of gang members.…

    • 555 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Single Parent Families: Article Analysis
    • 867 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Single Parent Families: Article Analysis

    al., 2014) what may be these visible problems in troubled families? Lack of guidance? The research in this article suggests that the more problems there are in the family and the more exposure there is to this undue violence the more coherent it becomes for an adolescent to become a gang member. Supporting evidence may be approached in a scarce way through the interactional theory by Thornberry and Krohn who combined that “gang membership result from a reciprocal relationship” (Alleyne and Wood, 2010) the theory in this report conducted by the secretary of state uses additional social domains built around this idea of peer pressure or schools but do focus on families as an add on so it cannot be applied by itself with Casey’s research. The effects of a dysfunctional family according to scholars and academics combined with and based upon social aspects turn ‘young children’ to ‘young gang members’ as shown by the report from…

    • 867 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Why Join Gangs Sociology
    • 798 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Why Join Gangs Sociology

    As a sociologist studying why youths join gangs, the approach that would be taken is the inductive approach. A sociologist should aim to answer questions as; do youths join gangs to gain a social status within their community? Or do they join gangs as a mean of protection? A lot of factors play a significant role in what makes youths turn to gangs. To make sure all possible factors are looked upon, it would be key to, observe youths within gangs and then base your hypothesis off of your observations.…

    • 798 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Violence In Brooklyn
    • 1743 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Violence In Brooklyn

    In an article review by Brien et al. states that, “Given the close association between gang participation and violence, there is significant overlap between risk factors and developmental trajectories for involvement in violent and gang delinquency”. They create fear and violence within neighborhoods, transport in drugs, destroy property, involve youth in criminal acts, and drive out businesses. Gangs can attract teens away from school and home into a life of violence. One of the dangerous aspects of gang violence is its often unselective and…

    • 1743 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Gang Violence Research Paper
    • 558 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Gang Violence Research Paper

    Introduction This paper will go over the nature and scope of juvenile antisocial behavior as it relates to organized gangs. It will describe three of the most common forms of antisocial behaviors in organized gangs. It will also cover and describe three types of proactive solutions to the gang violence. Juveniles that are involved in gangs normally have some contributing factors that pushed them towards wanting to hang out or join a gang.…

    • 558 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Merton Anomie-Strain Theory Analysis
    • 1007 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Merton Anomie-Strain Theory Analysis

    Decker et al. (2009) elaborates on the social pressures on immigrant children that can lead to gang involvement. First generation children of immigrants have to deal with “culture shock” and are conflicted between the values that they learn from their parents and the values they learn from their new society (Decker et al., 2009). Decker et al. claims that “culture is critical” in determining whether or not a youth will join a gang (Decker et al., 2009, p. 400).…

    • 1007 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Juvenile Gangs Research Paper
    • 2274 Words
    • 10 Pages

    Juvenile Gangs Research Paper

    It has been noted that “Youth gangs in the U.S. have existed since at least the 1870s,” (Mosher, lecture gangs). Since the establishment, gangs have grown across the globe. In the fourteenth and fifteenth century, gangs “robbed, extorted and raped,” (http://www.faqs.org/childhood/Wh-Z-and-other-topics/Youth-Gangs.html). Gangs have evolved into street gangs from the violent past. Although some gangs do participate in violence, violence is not their sole purpose.…

    • 2274 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Gang Violence In St. Louis, Missouri
    • 808 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Gang Violence In St. Louis, Missouri

    At a young age, numerous kids are introduced to the wrong crowd of people. In these crowds they witness horrific events and are taught the wrong morals of life. Everyone, especially children, need a family to support them. Often children in the area are not blessed with a family, making them look elsewhere for the family they desire. That is when gangs become their support system (“Why Young People”).…

    • 808 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Social Disorganization Theory: Why Youth Join Gangs
    • 1081 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Social Disorganization Theory: Why Youth Join Gangs

    Trying to address the question of why youth join gangs requires the examination of multiple factors, and preferably, multiple theories. Social disorganization theory explains that the place where an individual grows up matters – disordered neighborhoods lead youth to join gangs. Due to its overemphasis on disorganization within neighbourhoods, however, social disorganization theory is not able to assess every factor that causes youth to join gangs. In this paper, I argue that youth join gangs because of neighborhood influence, poverty, and peer influence. Social disorganization theory is able to explain neighborhoods that lack resources and poverty as reasons for youth gang involvement, but it is unable to account for why gang-affiliated peers cause youth to join gangs.…

    • 1081 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Social Learning Theory: Operant Conditioning Behavior
    • 979 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Social Learning Theory: Operant Conditioning Behavior

    Simons (2004) research suggests that family plays an important role and influences deviant behavior. The family’s interaction with one another creates norms and values within the family. Growing up in a single parent household, due to the incarceration of his father had an impact on his norms, values, and behaviors. By him attending a lower socio-economic high school, he was exposed to more deviant behavior, which ultimately lead him to become friends with people in gangs. Battin’s (1998) research on delinquent gangs indicate that becoming a part of a gang promotes and encourages higher levels of deviance and delinquent behaviors because gangs are violent.…

    • 979 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Prevention Of Gang Violence
    • 1645 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Prevention Of Gang Violence

    A youth typically begins hanging out with gang members at age 12 or 13 (even younger in some instances) and joins the gang between ages 13 and 15”(Slowikowski). Slowikowski quotes many turn to gangs for “protection, money, respect, fun, or because a friend” was in a gang. While these are common attraction of gangs that pose a appeal, these reasons only scratches the surface of how gang are formed. Based on extensive research by Slowikowski, the formation of gang have been categorized in 4 groups: Ethnicity, race, gender, and background. By illustrating demographic aspects of a person we are given a better…

    • 1645 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Gang Violence: A Case Study
    • 889 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Gang Violence: A Case Study

    Today gangs are not a rare thing to spot, the colors they are wearing, the tattoos they may have and the community they reside in allow gang members to be easily recognizable. Even though gang activity has been decreasing compared to the 1990s American crack epidemic when there was an influx of crack cocaine use in major cities across America, which resulted in an increase in crime, violence and a backlash on tough on crime policies. Violence is still prevalent among inner city neighborhoods due to street gangs fighting for control of the territory. This has become a violent turf war between not only rival gangs but also community members caught in the cross fire of that mayhem. This rivalry is not only affecting the members in those gangs…

    • 889 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Youth Gangs: A Literature Review
    • 822 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Youth Gangs: A Literature Review

    Although family is known as the unit of building up the behavior of a youngster, it may harbor undesired habits that later develop to a gang member characteristics. This habit is common in single-parent families and where conflicts exist between parents. However, Spergel, Curry, Chance, Kane, Ross, Alexander (1994) points out that these family issues must be accompanied by other characteristics or behavior traits for a youngster to develop and become a gang member. Politics and prison are also seen to be the roots of organized gangs.…

    • 822 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Superior Essays

    Summary: Social Disorganization Theory
    • 1035 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Summary: Social Disorganization Theory

    Communities with poor systems of education, crimes are bound to rise as the education in place cannot support the youths with jobs (Young et al. 2014). Youth’s in poor structural education system are raised in disorganized environment that motivate youth to join gangs. The social factor that motivates youth to join gangs is the peer gang affiliation. Gilman et al.…

    • 1035 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More

Related Topics

Ready To Get Started?
Discover
Company
Follow
©2024 Cram.com
Privacy Policy |  About Ads |  Site Map |  Advertise  | 
  • Cookie Settings