Youth Gangs And Adolescent Development

Your adulthood is just an extension of your childhood. Childhood experiences are important because they are what bring up one’s character and personality. A child’s influences on how he/she perceives life will stay with them for the remainder of his/her life. Often, childhood experience’s affect people’s thinking and the way that they behave in their adulthood. Children are influenced from both the outside world, but ultimately a child learns right from wrong, good from bad from their parents. Though most people do not remember the first few years their life the experiences still influence them well in to adulthood. It is important to realize that a parent is a child’s first role model. Negative behavior of a parent increases the risk of a
It is important to know that influence is critical to a young child. Often times children who are exposed to crime and violence tend to follow down that same path. A path that leads to a life of gangs. In an article Youth Gangs and Adolescent Development: New Findings, New Challenges, And New Directions: Introduction to The Special Section is presenting five new studies being conducted on youth gangs. A broader developmental perspective, underscoring the need for ongoing inquiry linking the heretofore separate literature on youth gangs and antisocial peer influences from criminology and developmental science (Boxer 201). Gangs have been present in America for decades. All through only in recent years are local and national observation studies showing gangs growing at an increasingly rapid rate. Discussing the full range of youth involvement in gangs. From how gangs evolve, their entry, the significant amounts of activities that occur during their involvement, to their disengagement. Understanding the complexity as to why youth join gangs is very critical and this article gives in depth research and reasoning. Peer pressure and influences being two main leading factors. The importance of learning and trying to address these issues in order to put the gang rise to a halt is very
As it describes in depth why youth become a part of gangs. The article Youth Gangs and Adolescent Development closely points out reasons why youth turn to gangs and Luis Rodriguez identifies with all of them. Luis Rodriguez was involved in gangs at a very young age. With all odds piled against him and feeling as if he did not belong within his community he was influenced by friends and peers to join the gang life. Luis shares his many stories though his novel. Talking about his reasoning for joining a gang, and the things that took place during the time he was in the gang life. He was exactly what the research was showing. He was a young man living in poverty, low-income homes, unaccepted, lack of communication, inadequate schooling, racism playing a huge role in his life, all things leading him to fall into the arm of