Caregiver Type and Gang Involvement: A Comparison of Female and Male Gang Members

Daniel Scott () and Natalie Goulette
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Daniel Scott: Department of Social Sciences, Texas A&M International University, 5201 University Boulevard, Academic Innovation Center 313, Laredo, TX 78041, USA
Natalie Goulette: Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, University of West Florida, 11000 University Parkway, Pensacola, FL 32514, USA

Social Sciences, 2023, vol. 12, issue 8, 1-15

Abstract: Gang involvement and delinquency are prominent issues frequently examined in criminal justice scholarship. Research has revealed that gang involvement increases the likelihood of delinquency/crime, and that youth participate in gangs for a variety of reasons including protection, status, and a sense of belonging. Although research has found that various social and familial factors increase the probability of gang involvement, it primarily focuses on males, and little work has compared how a youth’s primary caregiver influences the likelihood of gang involvement among both male and female gang members. The current study uses school level data to examine gang involvement and primary caregiver type among male and female youth. The results identify significant differences in gang involvement among boys and girls when examining primary caretaker. The findings have implications for theory and programming in connection with youth gang involvement for both boys and girls.

Keywords: gangs; youth; family; custodial grandparent; delinquency; gender (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A B N P Y80 Z00 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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