NCJ Number
196519
Journal
Youth & Society Volume: 34 Issue: 1 Dated: September 2002 Pages: 31-54
Editor(s)
Kathryn G. Herr
Date Published
September 2002
Length
24 pages
Annotation
This article examined the construct validity of a variety of self-report measures of gang membership by relating them to the concept of delinquent involvement, including drug and firearm use.
Abstract
Prior studies have shown the operationalization of gang membership varies significantly across researchers and typically consists of simply asking respondents to identify themselves as gang members. It is unclear from this methodology whether the types of gangs matching the conceptual definitions are truly being tapped. To address this, this study examined the construct validity of gang membership through the examination of the relationship between various methods of operationalizing gang membership and delinquent involvement. The analysis first examined the relationship between self-report operationalizations of gang membership and the organizational characteristics of the respondents’ gangs. Secondly, the various measures of gang membership are related to the delinquent behavior, both of the gangs and the individual respondents. Lastly, measures were related to both the gangs’ and the respondents’ involvement in firearms. Data were acquired from a 1995 study titled, Firearms, Violence and Youth in California, Illinois, Louisiana, and New Jersey, 1991 that employed a self-administered survey questioning 1,663 high school students (male and female) on gun ownership, gang membership, and gang activities, criminal activities, and drug and alcohol use. The results demonstrated that there were important consequences to the method utilized to measure gang membership impacting both the types of gangs studied and the negative consequences of the respondent’s gang involvement. Significant organizational differences in the structure of the gang depending on how respondents classified themselves were revealed. In addition, the respondent’s self-identification had a strong impact on both the group’s and individual’s criminal behavior. Those students who considered themselves members of an organized gang were more apt to engage in all types of delinquent activities as well as being more involved with firearms and firearm-related activities. One of the most important findings identified was the similarity between those who claimed that they hung out with a peer group and not part of a gang and those who claimed gang membership but stated they were just a bunch of guys. Findings demonstrated the importance of carefully operationalizing the term gang member. Tables and references