What’s Sex (Composition) Got to Do with It? The Importance of Sex Composition of Gangs for Female and Male Members’ Offending and Victimization

Sex composition of groups has been theorized in organizational sociology and found in prior work to structure female and male members’ behaviors and experiences. Peer group and gang literature similarly finds that the sex gap in offending varies across groups of differing sex ratios. Drawing on this and other research linking gang membership, offending, and victimization, we examine whether sex composition of gangs is linked to sex differences in offending in this sample, further assess whether sex composition similarly structures females’ and males’ victimization experiences, and if so, why. Self-report data from gang members in a multi-site, longitudinal study of 3,820 youths are employed. Results support previous findings about variations in member delinquency by both sex and sex composition of the gang and also indicate parallel variations in members’ victimization. These results are further considered within the context of facilitating effects such as gender dynamics, gang characteristics, and normative orientation

Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors and Disparities between the United States mainland compared to Puerto Rico, Guam, and United States Virgin Islands (i. e., United States territories)

Background: No studies have compared the lifestyle behaviors between Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U. S. Virgin Islands to that of the United States mainland. Documenting and addressing health disparities between these geographically and culturally distinct areas are important public health objectives. Differences in health status between and among the United States mainland and territories merit systematic and careful analyses. Methods: Four key healthy lifestyle characteristics include tobacco use, body mass index, physical activity, and fruit/vegetable consumption. Data from the 2009 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (N=420,481) were used to examine United States mainland and territorial differences among the four key healthy lifestyle behaviors. Descriptive statistics were summarized with chi-square tests for independence and multiple adjusted logistic regression models were used to examine differences in health compliance rates while controlling for age, gender, income, and education. Frequencies determined whether Healthy People 2010 goals were met by each location. Results: Differences were found between the United States mainland and territories for smoking rates, body mass index, physical activity, and consumption of fruit/vegetables. None of the countries met all four Healthy People 2010 goals. Discussion: Even though, each location had unique challenges, Puerto Ricans’ health behaviors were significantly less favorable than residents in the other countries. We document prevalence rates and differences by country for each of the four healthy lifestyle characteristics. This study highlights the need for more research in these understudied areas as well as the importance of effective health promotion and disease prevention programs for all United States citizens including the mainland and all territories

Examining the Effect of Changes in the Peer Group on Attitudes: A Longitudinal Study

Peer interactions are an important part of adolescence and have been the focus of much research in both psychology and criminology. The relationship between peer behavior and a youth’s own behavior has been demonstrated multiple times in prior research. Little is known, however, about how peer behavior may affect individual attitudes. This is surprising given that many prevention programs, particularly skills building programs, focus on changing and shaping individual attitudes to change/prevent behavior. This dissertation partially addressed this gap by focusing on the relationship between peer behavior and individual attitudes. This dissertation accomplishes three main goals through the use of three waves of data from a multi-site sample of 3,820 middle school youth. First, this dissertation assessed the causal ordering surrounding the relationship between peer behavior and individual attitudes. Second, prior research has shown that peer groups hold both antisocial and prosocial values and norms, which can affect individual attitudes in both conforming and nonconforming ways. Therefore, this dissertation examined the relative effect of prosocial and antisocial peers as well as the effect of the ratio of prosocial to antisocial peers on attitudes. Finally, this study examined how attitudes change in relation to changes in the peer group

Examining Racial and Ethnic Variations in Reasons for Leaving a Youth Gang

Purpose One underrepresented area of research within the developmental and life course framework is how criminal careers vary across racial and ethnic lines. Similarly, little is known about how the processes surrounding leaving a youth gang differ based on the experiences of racial and ethnic minorities. This manuscript will help fill this gap in both bodies of literature by examining differences in push and pull motivations for gang desistance across black, Hispanic, and white youth who reside in seven different cities across the USA. Methods The mixed-method analysis relies on grounded theory techniques to identify themes in the qualitative interviews as well as provides a quantitative comparison of gang desistance motivations. Results Black youth were least likely to report pulls associated with prosocial attachments and were also least likely to report being disillusioned with intragang relationships. Hispanic youth most commonly reported pulls associated with parental encouragement and experiencing official sanctions and pushes centered on direct and vicarious violent experiences. White youth most commonly reported pulls associated with having a significant other and pushes including feelings of disillusionment with intragang relationships. Conclusion While there is evidence that street socialization and social isolation uniquely impact the gang desistance decisions of black gang youth, these differences might not be enough to justify race-specific intervention programs

Mechanism for neurotransmitter-receptor matching.

Synaptic communication requires the expression of functional postsynaptic receptors that match the presynaptically released neurotransmitter. The ability of neurons to switch the transmitter they release is increasingly well documented, and these switches require changes in the postsynaptic receptor population. Although the activity-dependent molecular mechanism of neurotransmitter switching is increasingly well understood, the basis of specification of postsynaptic neurotransmitter receptors matching the newly expressed transmitter is unknown. Using a functional assay, we show that sustained application of glutamate to embryonic vertebrate skeletal muscle cells cultured before innervation is necessary and sufficient to up-regulate ionotropic glutamate receptors from a pool of different receptors expressed at low levels. Up-regulation of these ionotropic receptors is independent of signaling by metabotropic glutamate receptors. Both imaging of glutamate-induced calcium elevations and Western blots reveal ionotropic glutamate receptor expression prior to immunocytochemical detection. Sustained application of glutamate to skeletal myotomes in vivo is necessary and sufficient for up-regulation of membrane expression of the GluN1 NMDA receptor subunit. Pharmacological antagonists and morpholinos implicate p38 and Jun kinases and MEF2C in the signal cascade leading to ionotropic glutamate receptor expression. The results suggest a mechanism by which neuronal release of transmitter up-regulates postsynaptic expression of appropriate transmitter receptors following neurotransmitter switching and may contribute to the proper expression of receptors at the time of initial innervation

The Influence of Georgia’s Quality Rated System on School Readiness in Pre-School Children

Background: Georgia rates the quality of early childcare learning centers using a tiered quality improvement system. Georgia’s Quality Rated system (QR) designates a star level, (one star, two stars or three stars) to each center based on a portfolio of QR standards and an onsite assessment by Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning (DECAL). Childcare centers applying for QR status first submit a portfolio documenting how their practices align with QR standards centered on staff qualifications; child health, nutrition and physical activity; family engagement; holistic curricula and teacher-to-student ratios. Subsequently, an on-site assessment of the center is performed by DECAL using the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale– Revised (ECERS-R). Methods: The Bracken School Readiness Assessment-3rd Edition (BSRA-3) was administered to children in various one-star (N=2), two-star (N=4) and three-star (N=6) childcare learning centers in Georgia. Children’s height and weight were recorded and BMI assessments were conducted. Results: Significant differences were found in school readiness scores based on quality rating with two and three star centers scoring higher than one star centers. Children in childcare centers at the one-star level (Mean = 95.00, SD = 16.80) performed lower than children in childcare centers at the two-star level (Mean = 103.67, SD = 16.55) and three-star level (Mean = 100.42, SD = 14.35). Multiple comparison tests did not reveal differences between two-star and three-star level centers. Conclusions: Higher levels of quality in QR childcare centers displayed more school readiness than centers with lower levels of quality. Future studies should examine differences in higher quality centers to further explore the influence of QR programs on school readiness

Leaving the Gang: A Review and Thoughts on Future Research

Researchers have examined aspects of gangs and their members for almost a century. This work, however, focuses primarily on youth prior to joining as well as during gang involvement. While comparatively less is known about the leaving processes, work in this area has been increasing in recent years. This chapter will discuss the growing body of research on the processes associated with leaving the gang. Specifically, it will review difficulties associated with defining gang desistance, theoretical perspectives on desistance, variations in motives, methods, and consequences of leaving, barriers to desistance, as well as make recommendations for policy and future research

Gangs in School: Exploring the Experiences of Gang-Involved Youth

This study explores three questions: (1) What are the criteria that current or formerly gang-involved youth use to identify the presence of gangs in school? (2) Do gang activities produce incivilities and victimizations within the school context? and (3) What is the impact of a gang presence on youth in the school, specifically with respect to the presence or absence of fear? We examine the influence of gangs in schools through qualitative analysis of 180 in-depth semistructured interviews. The sample includes youth with varying levels of gang involvement who attended schools across the United States. Youth relied on personal knowledge and visual cues to identify gangs in their school. Despite the occurrence of vicarious victimizations and incivilities at the hands of gang youth, respondents indicated that gangs did not impact their school life. These youth frequently used normalization and delimitation processes to deal with gangs in their school

Differentiating Between Delinquent Groups and Gangs: Moving Beyond Offending Consequences

Even when controlling for high levels of delinquent peers, gang youth differ from their nongang counterparts on a variety of attitudinal and behavioral measures. Researchers have argued that differences can be attributed to the group processes present in the gang setting. This study explores the extent to which differences between youth in a gang and those in a delinquent group can be explained by Bandura’s social cognitive theory. Much of the prior research in this arena has relied on cross-sectional data; in this study, we expand on this prior research using fixed-effects modeling strategies with a multi-site panel of youth. The results comparing time periods when youth were in a gang versus a delinquent peer group indicate that gang-involved youth are more violent and have fewer conventional bonds. This work is able to advance our knowledge on attitudinal and behavioral differences between gangs and other types of peer groups

An Experimental Trial of a Dog-Training Program in a Juvenile Detention Center

Objectives This research examines the effect of a dog-training program among juveniles ordered to a county juvenile detention facility in a large, Midwestern city. Methods A pre-test, post-test experimental design was constructed to examine changes in self-esteem, empathy, optimism, pessimism, compassion, and social competence between juveniles who were randomly assigned to the canine-assisted activity program and to the standard conditions of the detention center without access to the program. Two-way and repeated measures ANOVA models are used to assess the differential effect of the program. Results The dog-training program evaluated in this study did not differentially benefit nor did it harm participants in relation to juveniles who received the standard operating practices and procedures of the detention center. Conclusions Generalized conclusions about the effectiveness of dog-training programs in secure correctional facilities should not be made from this study. Despite the unique program model structure used in this study, the results demonstrate that once selection effects are mitigated through randomization, the mere exposure to a dog-training program does not translate to improved outcomes. The results raise more questions about the influence of selection effects on reported findings and stimulate inquiry on dog-training program models, research designs used to assess program effects, and the importance of intermediate interventions