Abstract
Owing to a number of high-profile shootings in the UK over the past decade, there has been a significant amount of media and political interest in youth gangs. This chapter reports on a study conducted in 2009 in a large city in the North of England. It discusses the structure and formation of gangs in this city from the view of the young people identified as gang members and those responsible for this identification, i.e., police officers. Findings demonstrated that few of the young people viewed themselves as belonging to a gang; indeed, many were scathing of such an attribution, contesting its applicability. A more accurate description of these young people is of a rather loose and fluid, interlinked but informal social network of friends and associates. There was evidence that the authorities’ labeling of some young people as gang members and adoption and use of gang names attributed coherence and identity to what was often only fluid and transitional youth group formations. This may have created the very circumstances it sought to challenge.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Aldridge J, Medina J (2008) Youth gangs in an English city: social exclusion, drugs and violence. University of Manchester. Research report ESRC RES-000–23–0615. 16–01–2008
Alexander C (2008) Re-thinking “gangs”. Report prepared for the Runnymeade Trust. Retrieved from http://www.blackeducation.info/upload/docs/RethinkingGangs-2008.pdf
Bennett T, Holloway K (2004) Gang membership, drugs and crime in the UK. Br J Criminol 44:305–323
Bullock K, Tilley N (2002) Shootings, gangs and violent incidents in Manchester: developing a crime reduction strategy. Crime reduction research series paper 13, Home Office, London
Decker SH (2001) The impact of organizational features on gang activities and relationships. In: Klein MW, Kerner HJ, Maxson CL, Weitekamp EGM (eds) The Eurogang paradox: street gangs and youth groups in the U.S. and Europe. Kluwer Academic Publishers, London, pp 21–39
Decker S, Kempf-Leonard K (1991) Constructing gangs: the social definition of youth activities. Crim Just Policy Rev 5:271
Ekblom P (1999) Can we make crime prevention adaptive by learning from other evolutionary struggles. Stud Crime Crime Prevent 8:27–51 (Cited in M. Felson (2006) Crime and Nature. Thousand Oaks: Sage)
Esbensen F-A, Weerman FM (2005) Youth gangs and troublesome youth groups in the United States and the Netherlands: a cross national comparison. Eur J Criminol 2:5–37
Hallsworth S, Young T (2008) Gang talk and gang talkers: a critique. Crime, Media, Culture 4:175–195
HM Inspectorate of Prisons (2010) The management of gang issues among children and young people in prison custody and the community: a joint thematic review. HM Inspectorate of Prisons, London
Hobbs D (2001) The firm: organizational logic and the criminal culture on a shifting terrain. Br J Criminol 4:549–560
Howell JC (2007) Menacing or mimicking? Realities of youth gangs. Juvenile Fam Court 58:39–48
Kemshall H, Mackenzie G, Wood J, Bailey R, Yates, J (2005) Strengthening multi-agency public protection arrangements (MAPPAs). Home Office Development and Practice Report. Home Office, London
Kintrea K, Bannister J, Pickering J, Reid M, Suzuki N (2008) Young people and territoriality in British cities. Joseph Rowntree Foundation, London
Klein M (2001) Resolving the Eurogang paradox. In: Klein MW, Kerner HJ, Maxson CL, Weitekamp EGM (eds) The Eurogang paradox: street gangs and youth groups in the US and Europe. Kluwer Academic Publishers, London
Klein MW, Maxson CL (2006) Street gang patterns and policies. Oxford University Press, New York
Klein MW, Weerman F, Thornberry TP (2006) Street gang violence in Europe. Eur J Criminol 3:413–437
Mares D (2001) Gangstas or lager louts? Working class street gangs in Manchester. In: Klein MW, Kerner H-J, Maxson C, Weitekamp EGM (eds) The paradox: street gangs and youth groups in the U.S. and Europe. Kluwer, Dordrecht, pp 153–164
Office H (2004) Delinquent youth groups and offending behaviour: findings from the 2004 offending, crime and justice survey. HMSO, London
Office H (2008) Tackling gangs: a practical guide for local authorities, CDRPs and other local partners. HMSO, London
Ralphs R, Medina J, Aldridge J (2009) Who needs enemies with friends like these? The importance of place for young people living in known gang areas. J Youth Stud 12:483–500
Stelfox P (1998) Policing lower levels of organised crime in England and Wales. Howard J 37:393–406
The Centre for Social Justice (2009) Dying to belong: an in-depth review of street gangs in Britain. The Centre for Social Justice, London
Weerman FM, Maxson CL, Esbensen F, Aldridge J, Medina J, Gemert F (2009) Eurogang program manual: background, development, and use of the instruments in multi-site, multi-method comparative research. Retrieved from http://www.umsl.edu/~ccj/eurogang/Eurogang_20Manual.pdf
Youth Justice Board (2007) Groups, gangs and weapons. Youth Justice Board, London
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2012 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Smithson, H., Monchuk, L., Armitage, R. (2012). Gang Member: Who Says? Definitional and Structural Issues. In: Esbensen, FA., Maxson, C. (eds) Youth Gangs in International Perspective. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-1659-3_4
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-1659-3_4
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-1658-6
Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-1659-3
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and LawSocial Sciences (R0)