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The Causes of Juvenile Gangs

Most parents want their children to engage in sports or other hobbies which they can learn to socialize and develop a talent. But what if this socialization involved violence and the talent was learning the streets? A child involved in a gang can deeply distress the family and impair the child’s life. So, what would cause a child to want to engage in a gang? The environment and temperament of the child greatly contribute to the desire of participating in a gang. The child’s environment, including the family context, the neighborhood, the school of the child, and the temperament of the child play the most important role in the path to involvement in a juvenile gang.
A child’s environment is inescapable, therefore the child is unable to escape the characteristics that come with living in a particular environment. The family context of the child is crucial to development because this is where the child learns, amongst other things, socialization and morale. If this structure is damaged, the child’s perception of what is appropriate in terms of morals and socializing skills will become damaged as well. Parent psychopathology plays a key role in this because if the child’s parents are mentally ill, it is likely that their values will be skewed, therefore distorting the child’s morals. Substance abuse of the parents will also increase the child’s chances of being in a gang because most likely the parents will not be able to properly support the child, emotionally and financially, and the child becomes forced learn how to take care of his/herself. Marital distress will also precipitate the child’s need to be in a gang because the child needs to feel a sense of belonging, something many troubled children believe a gang will provide. If the family is impoverished, this only adds to the likelihood of the child joining a gang. Poverty disrupts families and changes the development of a child’s personality. A...