Gang Membership Risk Factors for Eighth-Grade Students

• Main Authors: James Martinez, Jeremy Tost, Larry Hilgert, Tracy Woodard-Meyers
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Nonpartisan Education Group 2013-07-01
• Series: Nonpartisan Education Review
• Subjects: Gang risk factor domains; gang membership; cliques; middle school
• Online Access: http://www.nonpartisaneducation.org/Review/Articles/v9n1.htm

The purpose of this study is to identify the major risk factor domains for gang membership and the relationships of these risk factors to eighth grade students. The domains of risk factors include: individual characteristics, peer group influences, family conditions, school experiences and the community context, along with demographic information obtained from the Student Gang Survey items. Through logistic multiple regression, risk factors associated with school, peer, community-neighborhood, and family were used to predict gang membership. Demographic data were also used as predictor variables. Results indicated that an increase in Community-Neighborhood Risk was associated with a decrease in joining a gang. Non-significant findings for Peer Risk, School Risk, Family Risk and demographic variables are additionally discussed. The current research identifies issues which middle school youth encounter in a county setting; provides a homegrown report to assist stakeholders (administrators, teachers, parents, students, and law enforcement) in identifying locally relevant risk factors of gang behavior; and substantiates risk factors for gang membership proliferation in those neighborhoods with no recently documented history of gangs.