Why Juveniles Join Gangs

Running Head : WHY JUVENILES JOIN GANGS

Why Juveniles join gangs

Naa 'ila Kornegay

Name of University

Professor Susan Wind

Research Methods in Criminal Justice

Date

Abstract

Gang membership is a pertinent issue in the society because of the negative implications that come along with the social evil . This study ascertains that gangs are social groups which are used as attention seeking tools by members . On the other hand , gangs are avenues for finding solutions to rejection from the society and families of the members of such gangs

. The purpose of this study is to analyze the various reasons which push juveniles to join gangs . The study will incorporate valid data from various articles to come up with reliable findings for this study . In this manner , the society will have viable and lasting solutions to the problems of gang membership in the course of rehabilitating youth from criminal slavery

Introduction

There are many reasons which make youth to join gangs . For instance gangs are viewed by youths as social groups which accord then prestigious social status among peers . According to Alonso , gangs have some properties which make them attractive to the youth (2004 . Youth who have been involved in criminal activities are popularly referred to as juveniles because they are less than eighteen years of age . According to research Juveniles account for the largest number of youths who join gangs all over the world (Rosenthal , 2000

Gangs are defined as social groups formed by a number of individuals who share the same interests and aspirations with the aim of attaining the set goals and objectives . Gangs are seen as a place of solace where individuals seek `comfort ' from rejection either from the society or family members . For instance , juveniles are usually sidelined by the society and this pushes them to join gangs so that they can be accepted In this light , it can be argued that the act of joining gangs is call for help from the members of the gang

This study ascertains that gangs have many implications with the negative implications surpassing the positive implications (Alonso 2004 . Some negative implications of gangs include social unrest and increase social evils like and murder in the society . This study ascertains that dealing with the implications of gangs is dealing with a small percentage of the problem . Hence , the society needs to analyze the reasons which lead the youth to join gangs . In this light , it is the purpose of this to analyze some of the reasons which make the youth to join gangs

Literature review

It can be argued that the world is very complex and social economic and cultural factors are directly responsible in shaping the behavior of youth (Sides , 2004 . In the same manner , the same social economic and cultural factors are directly responsible for `pulling ' many juveniles towards gangs . For instance , the society has learned to stereotype against juveniles making them some kind of `social misfits ' because they are seen as trouble makers . Such societal stereotypes drive...