Gang Membership, Youth Violence and Suicide

• In Event: Women and Crime

Abstract

Gang membership has been found to be associated with youth violence. However, research on gang members’ violence against oneself remains largely neglected in previous literature. Using the data from a representative sample of public high school students enrolled in 2008 Boston Youth Survey, we found that gang youths were more likely to have physical fight, self-harm behaviors, suicide idea, and suicide attempt when compared to non-gang youths. Relevant risk factors and policy implications will also be discussed.

Author

• Shao-Chiu Juan, University at Albany, SUNY