NCJ Number
164622
Journal
Journal of Gang Research Volume: 4 Issue: 1 Dated: (Fall 1996) Pages: 1-8
Date Published
1996
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This study provides a baseline level of information on the perceptions of staff members in secure juvenile correctional facilities regarding the degree of youth gang activity inside the institution, the nature of gang development, and the effects of gang activity on the facility staff and young offender population.
Abstract
The study, which was conducted during the summer and fall of 1995 in Georgia, involved three male juvenile institutions. The study is being conducted in two phases: one to obtain information from facility staff, and the second to obtain information directly from the juveniles themselves. This paper is a report on phase one, the staff component. A total of 123 staff members from the three institutions responded to the survey. Despite the low response rate from staff, the data support the presence of a number of indicators of gang activity in the institutions. Staff frequently see tattoos, graffiti, and contraband suggestive of gang involvement. Staff report frequent physical assaults among youths and frequent requests from youths for protective custody and transfers to other units. Staff also report the formation of cliques and the occurrence of secret meetings. Further, staff believe that much of the property damage within the facilities is gang-related. Although these findings do not constitute a definitive report on the full extent of gang activity within the juvenile correctional institutions, they do suggest that administrators should take the gang issue seriously; gang activity contributes to disciplinary problems and to the likelihood that institutional life will foster gang-related behaviors upon release. 2 tables and 13 references