GANGS, DRUGS, AND DELINQUENCY IN A SURVEY OF URBAN YOUTH*

TLDR

Youth delinquent gangs have attracted academic and media attention, yet most research relies on police data and case studies, leaving a gap in survey-based understanding of their prevalence and activities. The study aims to assess gang prevalence, demographic composition, illegal activity involvement, and the temporal link between offending and membership using Denver Youth Survey data. Data were drawn from the longitudinal Denver Youth Survey of families to analyze gang characteristics and offending patterns.

Abstract

Youth delinquent gangs have been given considerable academic and media attention during the past decade. Much of the attention has focused on the violence and drug dealing in which gang members are assumed to be involved. Recent knowledge about gangs has relied primarily on data obtained from police gang units and from observational or case studies. Very little information has been derived from surveys or interviews with a more general sample of youths. In this paper, data from the Denver Youth Survey, a longitudinal study of families, are used to examine: (1) the prevalence and demographic composition of gangs: (2) the degree to which gang members are involved in illegal activities: and (3) the temporal relationship between criminal offending and gang membership.