Editorial

5 pages, 189 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

“The More Things Change, the More They Stay the Same”: Research on Gang-Related Violence in the 21st Century—Introduction to Special Issue

by Matthew Valasik and Shannon E. Reid

Soc. Sci. 2021, 10(6), 225; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci10060225 - 11 Jun 2021

Viewed by 3254

Abstract

The goal of this Special Issue is to examine the diverse nature of gang-related violence in modern life by providing insights into the growing complexities to better direct public policy solutions in the 21st Century [...] Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research on Gang-Related Violence in the 21st Century)

Research

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17 pages, 462 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Social Media and the Variable Impact of Violence Reduction Interventions: Re-Examining Focused Deterrence in Philadelphia

by Jordan M. Hyatt, James A. Densley and Caterina G. Roman

Soc. Sci. 2021, 10(5), 147; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci10050147 - 22 Apr 2021

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 7280

Abstract

Focused deterrence is a gang violence reduction strategy that relies on a unique mix of strong enforcement messages from law enforcement and judicial officials coupled with the promise of additional services. At the heart of the intervention is a coordinated effort to communicate [...] Read more.

Focused deterrence is a gang violence reduction strategy that relies on a unique mix of strong enforcement messages from law enforcement and judicial officials coupled with the promise of additional services. At the heart of the intervention is a coordinated effort to communicate the costs and consequences of gun violence to identified gang members during face-to-face meetings and additional community messaging. In Philadelphia, focused deterrence was implemented between 2013 and 2016, and although an impact evaluation showed a significant decrease in shootings in targeted areas relative to matched comparison neighborhoods, the effect on targeted gangs was not universal, with some exhibiting no change or an increase in gun-related activity. Here, we employ data on group-level social media usage and content to examine the correlations with gun violence. We find that several factors, including the nature of social media activity by the gang (e.g., extent of activity and who is engaging), are associated with increases in the average rate of gang-attributable shootings during the evaluation period, while content-specific variables (e.g., direct threats towards rivals and law enforcement) were not associated with increases in shootings. Implications for violence reduction policy, including the implementation of focused deterrence, are discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research on Gang-Related Violence in the 21st Century)

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17 pages, 367 KiB

Open AccessArticle

East Side Story: Disaggregating Gang Homicides in East Los Angeles

by Matthew Valasik and Shannon E. Reid

Soc. Sci. 2021, 10(2), 48; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci10020048 - 01 Feb 2021

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 3919

Abstract

This research extends the homicide literature by using latent class analysis methods to examine the neighborhood structural and demographic characteristics of different categories of homicides in the Hollenbeck Community Policing Area of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). The Hollenbeck area itself is [...] Read more.

This research extends the homicide literature by using latent class analysis methods to examine the neighborhood structural and demographic characteristics of different categories of homicides in the Hollenbeck Community Policing Area of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). The Hollenbeck area itself is a 15 square-mile region with approximately 187,000 residents, the majority of whom are Latino (84 percent). Hollenbeck also has a protracted history of intergenerational Latinx gangs with local neighborhood residents viewing them as a fundamental social problem. Hollenbeck has over 30 active street gangs, each claiming a geographically defined territory, many of which have remained stable during the study period. Over twenty years (1990–2012) of homicide data collected from Hollenbeck’s Homicide Division are utilized to create an empirically rigorous typology of homicide incidents and to test whether or not gang homicides are sufficiently distinct in nature to be a unique category in the latent class analysis. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research on Gang-Related Violence in the 21st Century)

22 pages, 343 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Changes in Personal Social Networks across Individuals Leaving Their Street Gang: Just What Are Youth Leaving Behind?

by Caterina G. Roman, Meagan Cahill and Lauren R. Mayes

Soc. Sci. 2021, 10(2), 39; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci10020039 - 26 Jan 2021

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3525

Abstract

Despite a small but growing literature on gang disengagement and desistance, little is known about how social networks and changes in networks correspond to self-reported changes in street gang membership over time. The current study describes the personal or “ego” network composition of [...] Read more.

Despite a small but growing literature on gang disengagement and desistance, little is known about how social networks and changes in networks correspond to self-reported changes in street gang membership over time. The current study describes the personal or “ego” network composition of 228 street gang members in two east coast cities in the United States. The study highlights changes in personal network composition associated with changes in gang membership over two waves of survey data, describing notable differences between those who reported leaving their gang and fully disengaging from their gang associates, and those who reported leaving but still participate and hang out with their gang friends. Results show some positive changes (i.e., reductions) in criminal behavior and many changes toward an increase in prosocial relationships for those who fully disengaged from their street gang, versus limited changes in both criminal behavior and network composition over time for those who reported leaving but remained engaged with their gang. The findings suggest that gang intervention programs that increase access to or support building prosocial relationships may assist the gang disengagement process and ultimately buoy desistance from crime. The study also has implications for theorizing about gang and crime desistance, in that the role of social ties should take a more central role. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research on Gang-Related Violence in the 21st Century)

18 pages, 329 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Making Sense of Murder: The Reality versus the Realness of Gang Homicides in Two Contexts

by Marta-Marika Urbanik and Robert A. Roks

Soc. Sci. 2021, 10(1), 17; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci10010017 - 12 Jan 2021

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 4135

Abstract

Despite the proliferation of research examining gang violence, little is known about how gang members experience, make sense of, and respond to peer fatalities. Drawing from two ethnographies in the Netherlands and Canada, this paper interrogates how gang members experience their affiliates’ murder [...] Read more.

Despite the proliferation of research examining gang violence, little is known about how gang members experience, make sense of, and respond to peer fatalities. Drawing from two ethnographies in the Netherlands and Canada, this paper interrogates how gang members experience their affiliates’ murder in different street milieus. We describe how gang members in both studies made sense of and navigated their affiliates’ murder(s) by conducting pseudo-homicide investigations, being hypervigilant, and attributing blameworthiness to the victim. We then demonstrate that while the Netherland’s milder street culture amplifies the significance of homicide, signals the authenticity of gang life, and reaffirms or tests group commitment, frequent and normalized gun violence in Canada has desensitized gang-involved men to murder, created a communal and perpetual state of insecurity, and eroded group cohesion. Lastly, we compare the ‘realness’ of gang homicide in The Hague with the ‘reality’ of lethal violence in Toronto, drawing attention to the importance of the ‘local’ in making sense of murder and contrasting participants’ narratives of interpretation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research on Gang-Related Violence in the 21st Century)

15 pages, 1360 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Social Network Consequences of a Gang Murder Blowout

by Alice Airola and Martin Bouchard

Soc. Sci. 2020, 9(11), 204; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci9110204 - 11 Nov 2020

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 5250

Abstract

An unexpected crisis in a criminal organization offers a rare opportunity to analyze whether and how the configuration of business and trust relationships changes in response to external shocks. The current study recreates the social network of the Red Scorpion gang members involved [...] Read more.

An unexpected crisis in a criminal organization offers a rare opportunity to analyze whether and how the configuration of business and trust relationships changes in response to external shocks. The current study recreates the social network of the Red Scorpion gang members involved in the Surrey Six Murder, one of the deadliest gang-related homicides to occur in Canada. The event, which involved two bystanders and six victims in total, was the result of a poorly executed retaliation. Our analyses focus on two phases of the network, the conspiracy phase and the post-murder phase. In each phase, we examine the balance of business, trust, and conflictual ties. Results show that the relative importance of key participants changed from the conspiracy to the post-murder phases, whereby strong, trusted ties gained prominence over the mostly business-oriented network of the conspiracy phase. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research on Gang-Related Violence in the 21st Century)

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19 pages, 1016 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evolving Patterns of Aggression: Investigating the Structure of Gang Violence during the Era of Civil Gang Injunctions

by Gisela Bichler, Alexis Norris and Citlalik Ibarra

Soc. Sci. 2020, 9(11), 203; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci9110203 - 11 Nov 2020

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 4682

Abstract

Mapping the structural characteristics of attack behavior, this study explores how violent conflict evolved with the implementation of civil gang injunctions (CGIs). Networks were generated by linking defendants and victims named in 963 prosecutions involving street gangs active in the City of Los [...] Read more.

Mapping the structural characteristics of attack behavior, this study explores how violent conflict evolved with the implementation of civil gang injunctions (CGIs). Networks were generated by linking defendants and victims named in 963 prosecutions involving street gangs active in the City of Los Angeles (1998–2013). Aggregating directed ties to 318 groups associated with the combatants, we compare four observations that correspond with distinct phases of CGI implementation—development (1998–2001), assent (2002–2005), maturity (2006–2009), and saturation (2010–2013). Using a triad census to calculate a ratio of simple patterns (retaliation, directed lines, and out-stars) to complex three-way interactions, we observed that CGIs were associated with a substantive thickening of conflict—greater complexity was found in conflict relations over time. Dissecting the nature of change, stochastic actor-oriented models (SAOMs) show that enjoined gangs are more likely to initiate transitive closure. The findings suggest that crime control efforts must make regular adjustments in response to the evolving structure of gang interactions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research on Gang-Related Violence in the 21st Century)

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21 pages, 359 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Exploring the Influence of Drug Trafficking Gangs on Overdose Deaths in the Largest Narcotics Market in the Eastern United States

by Nicole J. Johnson, Caterina G. Roman, Alyssa K. Mendlein, Courtney Harding, Melissa Francis and Laura Hendrick

Soc. Sci. 2020, 9(11), 202; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci9110202 - 07 Nov 2020

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5859

Abstract

Research has found that drug markets tend to cluster in space, potentially because of the profit that can be made when customers are drawn to areas with multiple suppliers. But few studies have examined how these clusters of drug markets—which have been termed [...] Read more.

Research has found that drug markets tend to cluster in space, potentially because of the profit that can be made when customers are drawn to areas with multiple suppliers. But few studies have examined how these clusters of drug markets—which have been termed “agglomeration economies”—may be related to accidental overdose deaths, and in particular, the spatial distribution of mortality from overdose. Focusing on a large neighborhood in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, known for its open-air drug markets, this study examines whether deaths from accidental drug overdose are clustered around street corners controlled by drug trafficking gangs. This study incorporates theoretically-informed social and physical environmental characteristics of street corner units into the models predicting overdose deaths. Given a number of environmental changes relevant to drug use locations was taking place in the focal neighborhood during the analysis period, the authors first employ a novel concentration metric—the Rare Event Concentration Coefficient—to assess clustering of overdose deaths annually between 2015 and 2019. The results of these models reveal that overdose deaths became less clustered over time and that the density was considerably lower after 2017. Hence, the predictive models in this study are focused on the two-year period between 2018 and 2019. Results from spatial econometric regression models find strong support for the association between corner drug markets and accidental overdose deaths. In addition, a number of sociostructural factors, such as concentrated disadvantage, and physical environmental factors, particularly blighted housing, are associated with a higher rate of overdose deaths. Implications from this study highlight the need for efforts that strategically coordinate law enforcement, social service provision and reductions in housing blight targeted to particular geographies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research on Gang-Related Violence in the 21st Century)

13 pages, 294 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Comparing Violent and Non-Violent Gang Incidents: An Exploration of Gang-Related Police Incident Reports

by Dena Carson and Natalie Kroovand Hipple

Soc. Sci. 2020, 9(11), 199; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci9110199 - 03 Nov 2020

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 4342

Abstract

Prior research has established a strong link between gangs and violence. Additionally, this connection is demonstrated across multiple methodologies such as self-report surveys, qualitative interviews, as well as official records. Officially recorded gang data can be increasingly hard to obtain because data collection [...] Read more.

Prior research has established a strong link between gangs and violence. Additionally, this connection is demonstrated across multiple methodologies such as self-report surveys, qualitative interviews, as well as official records. Officially recorded gang data can be increasingly hard to obtain because data collection approaches differ by agency, county, city, state, and country. One method for obtaining official gang data is through the analysis of police incident reports, which often rely on police officers’ subjective classification of an incident as “gang-related.” In this study we examine 741 gang-related incident reports collected over four years from the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department. This study will explore reasons why incidents were attributed to gangs as well as compare the characteristics of violent, drug, and non-violent gang-related incidents. This work has implications for understanding the complexities associated with gang incident reports as well as for the commonality of violent gang crimes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research on Gang-Related Violence in the 21st Century)

Review

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24 pages, 638 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperReview

Street Gang Intervention: Review and Good Lives Extension

by Jaimee Mallion and Jane Wood

Soc. Sci. 2020, 9(9), 160; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci9090160 - 15 Sep 2020

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 10187

Abstract

Tackling street gangs has recently been highlighted as a priority for public health. In this paper, the four components of a public health approach were reviewed: (1) surveillance, (2) identifying risk and protective factors, (3) developing and evaluating interventions at primary prevention, secondary [...] Read more.

Tackling street gangs has recently been highlighted as a priority for public health. In this paper, the four components of a public health approach were reviewed: (1) surveillance, (2) identifying risk and protective factors, (3) developing and evaluating interventions at primary prevention, secondary prevention, and tertiary intervention stages, and (4) implementation of evidence-based programs. Findings regarding the effectiveness of prevention and intervention programs for street gang members were mixed, with unclear goals/objectives, limited theoretical foundation, and a lack of consistency in program implementation impeding effectiveness at reducing street gang involvement. This paper proposes that the Good Lives Model (GLM), a strengths-based framework for offender rehabilitation, provides an innovative approach to street gang intervention. Utilizing approach-goals, the GLM assumes that improving an individual’s internal skills and external opportunities will reduce the need to become involved in street gangs. Wrapping the GLM framework around current evidence-based interventions (e.g., Functional Family Therapy) increases client engagement and motivation to change, which is notably poor amongst those at risk of, or involved in, street gangs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research on Gang-Related Violence in the 21st Century)

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