Adolescent Risk Factors and Later Justice System Contact among Eurogang-defined Youth: Results from a U.S. Sample

• In Event: Advancing the Eurogang Program of Research: Perspectives on Gang Membership, Violence, and Justice System Involvement

Abstract

Gang membership in adolescence is associated with a variety of long-term consequences including lower educational attainment, early parenthood, incarceration, drug use/abuse, as well as crime in adulthood. Gang involvement, while an important risk factor, is one of many that young people face in their early teenage years. This presentation will draw on a large sample of individuals (n = 3,820) who resided in seven urban locations across the United States in 2006 when they were between 11 and 12 years old and are now roughly 30 years old. We will examine whether a subset of this sample who were identified as gang involved according to the Eurogang definition in adolescence are more likely to be justice system involved in early adulthood than non-gang involved respondents. To do so, we rely on two data sources. First, self-report data from the G.R.E.A.T. evaluation will be used to determine risk factors in adolescence. This data set consists of 697 youth identified as Eurogang-involved at some point between 2006 and 2011. Second, we draw on open-source court data gathered as part of an ongoing long-term follow-up of the G.R.E.A.T. study to document criminal and civil court involvement in adulthood. Results will help to determine whether gang membership in adolescence, as defined in the Eurogang instrument, is an enduring risk factor for justice system involvement in adulthood.

Authors

• Dena Carson, Indiana University Indianapolis

• Chris Melde, Michigan State University

• Steven Chermak, Michigan State University