Synonyms
Definition
Membership in a group wherein its members have a high degree of interaction, similarity, as well as mutual interests and goals that are often achieved via criminal means.
Introduction
Membership in gangs is associated with increased involvement in violent crime (Bjerregaard and Smith 1993; Esbensen and Huizinga 1993). This presents obvious risks, including the potential to be physically harmed during violent altercations and to be prosecuted for crimes committed. Given these risks, there are likely benefits of gang affiliation that offset these costs. Here we describe the structure of gangs and what benefits might accrue to members of gangs.
Entitativity of Groups
Groups vary in the extent to which they are perceived as a coherent entity; this entitativity or “groupiness” (Dasgupta et al. 1999) is determined by a number of factors. In particular, entitative groups exhibit a high degree of interaction, rate membership in the group...
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Brindley, S., McDonald, M. (2017). Gang Affiliation. In: Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_966-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_966-1
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