National Youth Gang Survey Analysis
Gang Migration
Gang-Member Migrant (Percentage)
Respondents provided information regarding the percentage of gang member migrants in their jurisdictions.
Gang migration refers to the movement of actively involved gang youth from other jurisdictions.
- In 2004, the majority of gang-problem agencies in each area type reported that none or few (less than 25 percent) of the documented gang members in their jurisdiction had migrated from other areas, including over two-thirds of the rural counties.
- Most of the remaining agencies serving suburban counties and smaller cities were unable to provide gang-member migration information, perhaps suggesting a marginal effect of this issue on the overall local gang problem.
- Additional analysis reveals that areas with emerging gang problems are less likely to report gang-member migration than areas with chronic gang problems.
- Collectively, these findings support empirical research which has demonstrated that a community’s gang problem—however affected from other areas—is primarily and inherently homegrown and localized in nature.
| Percentage | Larger Cities | Suburban Counties | Smaller Cities | Rural Counties |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No Data Reported | 12.4% | 20.7% | 22.6% | 12.7% |
| 0–25% | 64.3 | 51.6 | 55.5 | 69.8 |
| 25–50% | 15.4 | 14.8 | 10.9 | 6.3 |
| Over 50% | 7.9 | 12.9 | 10.9 | 11.1 |
Analysis for this section pertains only to law enforcement agencies reporting gang problems. Please see the Prevalence of Youth Gang Problems section.
Reasons for Gang-Member Migration
Respondents provided information regarding the common reasons for gang-member migration in their jurisdictions.
- Across all area types, social reasons—concerns and efforts to improve quality of life, including moves with family for employment and/or educational opportunities—are significantly more likely to be cited as affecting local gang-member migration than other more illicit reasons, such as drug market opportunities.
- Agencies that experienced the highest levels of gang-member migration are significantly more likely to report migration for social reasons.
- Additionally, social reasons for gang-member migration are most often cited irrespective of year of gang onset.
| Average Rank (1=Not at All, 4=Very Much) |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reasons | Larger Cities | Suburban Counties | Smaller Cities | Rural Counties |
| Social | 3.1* | 3.1* | 3.1* | 3.4* |
| Drug Market Opportunities | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.5 | 2.3 |
| Avoid Law Enforcement | 2.5 | 2.4 | 2.4 | 2.6 |
| Other Illegal Ventures | 2.6 | 2.6 | 2.6 | 2.4 |
| Leave Gang Life | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1.7 | 1.8 |
* Note: Significantly different from all other values at .01 level
Analysis for this section pertains only to law enforcement agencies reporting gang problems. Please see the Prevalence of Youth Gang Problems section.
Suggested citation: National Youth Gang Center (2007). National Youth Gang Survey Analysis. Retrieved [date] from http://www.iir.com/nygc/nygsa/
