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Home > NYGC > NYGSA > Demographics

National Youth Gang Survey Analysis

Demographics

Age

Respondents provided information regarding the estimated ages of youth gang members in their jurisdictions per survey year.

  • Law enforcement agencies report a greater percentage of adult (18 and over) gang members compared with juvenile (under 18) gang members.
  • The age of gang members as reported by law enforcement is virtually unchanged in the 2001–2004 survey period compared with the 1996–1999 survey period.

The bar chart is entitled “Age of Gang Members.” Displayed horizontally are the two age groups—Juvenile (under 18) and Adult (18 & over)—and displayed vertically are percentages from 0 to 70. The categories “1996-1999 Average” and “2001-2004 Average” are presented as the data points. The heading entitled “Age” includes bullet points which describe this bar chart.

Analysis for this section pertains only to law enforcement agencies reporting gang problems. Please see the Prevalence of Youth Gang Problems section.

Age by Area Type

The age of youth gang members is compared across area types.

  • Larger cities and suburban counties, which typically have long-standing gang problems, are more likely to report adult gang members than juvenile gang members.
  • Conversely, smaller cities and rural counties, whose gang problems are relatively recent, are more likely to report juvenile gang members.

The bar chart is entitled “Age of Gang Members by Area Type, 2004.” Displayed horizontally are the four area types—larger cities, suburban counties, smaller cities, and rural counties—and displayed vertically are percentages from 0 to 100. The categories “Juvenile (under 18)” and “Adult (18 & over)” are presented as the data points. The heading entitled “Age by Area Type” includes bullet points which describe this bar chart.

Analysis for this section pertains only to law enforcement agencies reporting gang problems. Please see the Prevalence of Youth Gang Problems section.

Gender

Respondents provided information regarding the gender of youth gang members in their jurisdictions per survey year.

  • Law enforcement agencies overwhelmingly report a greater percentage of male gang members versus female gang members—a typical finding from law enforcement data but one that is challenged by other research methodologies.

The bar chart is entitled “Gender of Gang Members.” Displayed horizontally are the two genders groups—“Female” and “Male” and displayed vertically are percentages from 0 to 100. The categories “1996-1999 Average” and “2001-2004 Average” are presented as the data points. The heading entitled “Gender” includes bullet points which describe this bar chart.

Analysis for this section pertains only to law enforcement agencies reporting gang problems. Please see the Prevalence of Youth Gang Problems section.

Female Membership in Gangs

Female gang membership is compared across area types.

  • Although gang-member data maintained by law enforcement largely focuses on males, smaller cities and rural counties report a higher percentage of female gang membership—a finding that appears interrelated with the more recent onset of gang problems and the predominately youthful nature of gang membership in these areas.

The bar chart is entitled “Female Estimates of Gang Membership, 2004.” Displayed horizontally are the four area types—larger cities, suburban counties, smaller cities, and rural counties—and displayed vertically are percentages from 0 to 15. The female estimates of gang membership are presented as the data points. The heading entitled “Female Membership in Gangs” includes bullet points which describe this bar chart.

Analysis for this section pertains only to law enforcement agencies reporting gang problems. Please see the Prevalence of Youth Gang Problems section.

Gangs With Female Members

Respondents provided information regarding gangs with female members in their jurisdictions.

  • A large percentage of agencies in each area type could not provide information regarding the prevalence of female membership within gangs, suggesting this issue is of lesser significance for law enforcement.
  • Of those agencies that could provide information, proportionally few reported that none of the gangs in their jurisdiction have female members.
  • Conversely, approximately 1 in 5 larger cities, 1 in 4 suburban counties and smaller cities, and 1 in 3 rural counties reported over half of the gangs in their jurisdiction have female members.
Gangs With Female Members, 2004
Gangs With Female Members Larger Cities Suburban Counties Smaller Cities Rural Counties
No Data Reported 30.6% 37.9% 37.2% 34.9%
0% 7.5 6.3 10.9 14.3
1–25% 25.7 17.6 8.8 6.3
26–50% 15.7 14.8 14.6 12.7
Over 50% 20.6 23.4 28.5 31.7

Analysis for this section pertains only to law enforcement agencies reporting gang problems. Please see the Prevalence of Youth Gang Problems section.

Race/Ethnicity of Gang Members

Respondents provided information regarding the race/ethnicity of youth gang members in their jurisdictions per survey year.

  • Law enforcement agencies report a greater percentage of Hispanic/Latino and African American/black gang members compared to other race/ethnicities.
  • The racial/ethnic composition of gang members as reported by law enforcement is virtually unchanged in the 2001–2004 survey period compared with the 1996–1999 survey period.

The bar chart is entitled “Race/Ethnicity of Gang Members.” Displayed horizontally are the four race/ethnicity groups—African American/black, Hispanic/Latino, Caucasian/White, and Other—and displayed vertically are percentages from 0 to 50. The categories “1996-1999 Average” and “2001-2004 Average” are presented as the data points. The heading entitled “Race/Ethnicity of Gang Members” includes bullet points which describe this bar chart.

Analysis for this section pertains only to law enforcement agencies reporting gang problems. Please see the Prevalence of Youth Gang Problems section.

Race/Ethnicity of Gang Members by Area Type

The race/ethnicity of youth gang members is compared across area types.

  • Across all area types, the majority of law enforcement agencies report that African American/black and/or Hispanic/Latino youth predominate among documented gang members.
  • However, additional analysis reveals an important underlying relationship between gang membership size, gang-problem onset, and race/ethnicity characteristics—agencies reporting smaller numbers of gang members or a relatively new emergence of gang problems are significantly more likely to report a greater percentage of Caucasian/white gang members. For example, larger cities with newer gang problems are over twice as likely to report greater variation in racial/ethnic composition of gang members (that is, proportionally fewer African American/black and/or Hispanic/Latino gang members) than larger cities with long-standing gang problems.

The bar chart is entitled “Race/Ethnicity of Gang Members by Area Type, 2004.” Displayed horizontally are the four area types—larger cities, suburban counties, smaller cities, and rural counties—and displayed vertically are percentages from 0 to 60. The four race/ethnicity groups—African American/black, Hispanic/Latino, Caucasian/White, and Other—are presented as the data points. The heading entitled “Race/Ethnicity of Gang Members by Area Type” includes bullet points which describe this bar chart.

Analysis for this section pertains only to law enforcement agencies reporting gang problems. Please see the Prevalence of Youth Gang Problems section.

Table of Contents

Suggested citation: National Youth Gang Center (2007). National Youth Gang Survey Analysis. Retrieved [date] from http://www.iir.com/nygc/nygsa/