Identifying risks for male street gang affiliation: a systematic review and narrative synthesis

Abstract

Gang violence has increased in recent years. Individuals are becoming gang affiliated younger, and many have suffered historic maltreatment. Subsequent exposure to violence can result in profound consequences, including acute psychological harm. This review aims to identify predictive risk factors for male street gang affiliation. A systematic literature search was conducted utilising PsycINFO, PsycARTICLES, Medline, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and the Social Policy and Practice databases (from the databases' inception to 03/04/15). From this search, n=244 peer-reviewed papers were included in an initial scoping review, and n=102 thereafter met criteria for a systematic review; a narrative synthesis follows. Gang members have typically faced numerous historic adversities across multiple domains; individual, family, peers, school and community. Cumulative factors generated an independent risk. The metanarrative described an overarching failure to safeguard vulnerable individuals, with the motivation for gang affiliation hypothetically arising from an attempt to have their basic needs met. Clinical and research recommendations were made to inform early intervention policy and practice.

Design, development and validity testing of the gang affiliation risk measure (GARM)

“…Results from the systemic review (Raby & Jones, 2016) and intelligence sources (Home Office, 2013;IGU, 2013), supported by previous research findings (Pyrooz, 2014), indicated a particular vulnerability to gang affiliation upon transition to secondary school. Therefore, our ultimate aim was to develop a self-report questionnaire that could be given to children around the age of 11 years that could predict their risk of subsequently becoming gang affiliated.…”

“…The first stage pertained to measure development and the creation of a pilot GARM (P-GARM) (see Appendix 1 in online materials). This included consultation with a range of experts to gain an improved understanding of whether risks identified in the systematic review (Raby & Jones, 2016) aligned with their operational or lived experience of gang affiliation in the UK. Thereafter, this stage involved a process of item design and selection for the P-GARM.…”

“…The spread of gangs has been likened to epidemiological core infection, and social contagion models (Laumann & Youm, 1999;Fagan, Wilkinson & Davies, 2007), particularly in areas characterised by low socio-economic status (Gilman et al, 2003;Pyrooz, 2014;Raby & Jones, 2016). Whilst youth gangs are not a new phenomenon (Johnson & Muhlhausen, 2005), the relatively recent transnational extension of gang activity has resulted in a global security threat (Johnson & Muhlhausen, 2005) including in UK cities (Decker, 2007).…”

“…Moreover, while the risk factors that emerged from the systematic review (Raby & Jones, 2016) could in principle be utilised as a foundation for such a screening measure, some caution needs to be exercised in this regard as only eight of the 103 included studies were conducted in the UK. Therefore, the development of a UK relevant screening measure needs to incorporate an examination of the factors that are associated with gang affiliation in this context.…”

“…A recent systematic review, including 103 studies (Raby & Jones, 2016), identified both predictive risks (from studies utilising longitudinal designs) and associated risks (from studies using cross sectional designs) for gang affiliation. The overarching meta-narrative emerging from this review was of a failure to safeguard vulnerable individuals, which provided support for a relationship between developmental trauma and gang affiliation (cf.…”