Do Perceptions of Neighborhood Disorganization Predict Crime or Victimization?: An Examination of Gang Member Versus Non-Gang Member Jail Inmates

• NCJ Number: 231754
• Journal: Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 38 Issue: 4 Dated: July/August 2010 Pages: 720-729
• Author(s): Kathleen A. Fox; Jodi Lane; Ronald L. Akers
• Date Published: July 2010
• Length: 10 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: Netherlands

Annotation

This study tested social disorganization theory's ability to predict crime perpetration and victimization among gang and non-gang members.

Abstract

This study examines the effects of perceptions of social disorganization on crime perpetration and victimization among a sample of incarcerated adult gang and non-gang members. Using survey data from 2,414 jail inmates, results suggest that gang members are significantly more likely than non-gang members to be both perpetrators and victims of property and personal crimes. Results also indicate substantive similarities and differences between gang members and non-gang members with regard to crime, victimization, and perceptions of social disorganization. Inmates' perceptions of the level of social disorganization in their neighborhoods are more strongly related to their reported offending behavior than to their reported victimization. (Published Abstract)