Juveniles joining gangs and committing delinquent activity/crime - Essay Example

Juveniles Joining Gangs March 27, Juveniles Joining Gangs Different and numerous factors can help explain why juveniles join gangs and commit more delinquent behaviors together than when alone (Krohn et al., 2011). Sociological and developmental reasons vary on understanding the causes of juvenile gang participation behaviors. The developmental perspective focuses on a child’s developmental needs that have psychological and social dimensions, while sociological perspectives emphasize the role of the environment in shaping how juveniles make decisions towards gang membership.

From a developmental perspective, children between the ages of 8 and 14 frequently look for the company of their peers to obtain support, status, and identity (Siegel, 2014). Children who cannot find non-delinquent friends who can give them a sense of identity and social support may be attracted to delinquent ones who can respond to the former’s social and identity needs (Siegel, 2014). At the same time, children who are already delinquent tend to be more attracted to similarly-behaving friends (Barnes et al., 2010). Their kinship is based on their shared psychological profiles.

Together, they reinforce each other’s aggressiveness and delinquent habits and conduct more crimes than when they are separated (Barnes et al., 2010). At the same time, the mob or group factor also has a developmental basis. Delinquent kids conduct more crimes in gangs because of the anonymity and loss of responsibility that gangs offer. In their gangs, they feel anonymous and invisible. They may also feel less responsible for their crimes because they did it as a group. Developmentally, they lack the psychosocial maturity needed to reject peer pressure and to feel responsible for the consequences of their actions.

Sociological reasons are also varied, where the social disorganization view states that poverty is a critical factor in gang membership. Living in the slums presents destructive elements that make children feel that their only way to survive is to join gangs (Siegel, 2014). The slums represent hopelessness and helplessness, and these children want to feel more empowered and in control of their lives. They are aware that they have limited options for gaining wealth and status, so they attain them through gang membership (Siegel, 2014).

The conventional means have failed them, thus, they commit gang delinquency behaviors to pursue success, status, and social acceptance (Siegel, 2014).Besides the social disorganization view, the anomie/alienation view asserts that children who feel alienated seek for a haven that can accept people like them (Siegel, 2014). Deviant children may feel that they could only be accepted in deviant groups or organizations, like gangs (Siegel, 2014). In addition, the anomie view is also similar with the social disorganization view which asserts that significant social problems or changes can lead to children losing access to traditional means of success and status (Knight et al., 2012). Without these traditional means, children access deviant ways and groups to attain social status and wealth.

Another cause of gang membership shows the interplay between culture and identity. Hispanic gangs, for instance, form in places where Hispanic and African American youth experience poverty and discrimination (Krohn et al., 2011). They join gangs because they believe that the latter provide a strong identity through a more solid racial identity (Krohn et al., 2011). These racial bases of anomie can then increase the need for and solidarity in juvenile gangs. Apart from alienation, many children join gangs because of their basic economic needs, according to the rational choice view.

This view assumes that the youth can make rational decisions that impact their immediate and long-run welfare. These children are not joining gangs largely because of status or approval, but more significantly, because they want to survive in the slums (Siegel, 2014). Gangs can give them protection and help them make money (Siegel, 2014). Gangs will be there in ways that their parents and the government will not. If they commit crimes together, they attain basic social and economic needs. These theories help explain the risk factors for juvenile gang membership.

ReferencesBarnes, J.C., Beaver, K.M., & Miller, J.M. (2010). Estimating the effect of gang membership on nonviolent and violent delinquency: a counterfactual analysis. Aggressive Behavior, 36(6), 437-451.Knight, G.P., Losoya, S.H., Cho, Y., Chassin, L., Williams, J.L., & Cota-Robles, S. (2012). Ethnic identity and offending trajectories among Mexican American juvenile offenders: Gang membership and psychosocial maturity. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 22(4), 782-796.Krohn, M.D., Schmidt, N.M., Lizotte, A.J., & Baldwin, J.M. (2011).

The impact of multiple marginality on gang membership and delinquent behavior for Hispanic, African American, and White male adolescents. Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, 27(1), 18-42.Siegel, L.J. (2014). Juvenile delinquency: The core (5th ed.). California: Wadsworth. Print.