Type of Document	Thesis
Author	Dhungana, Karla Johanna
Author's Email Address	kod07@fsu.edu
URN	etd-08232009-223300
Title	Risk Factors of Gang Membership: A Study of Community, School, Family, Peer and Individual Level Predictors Among Three South Florida Counties
Degree	Master of Science
Department	Criminology and Criminal Justice, School of
Advisory Committee	Advisor Name Title Sarah Bacon Committee Chair Brian Stults Committee Member William Bales Committee Member
Keywords	Gangs Risk Factors Florida Gangs Life Course Perspective
Date of Defense	2009-04-24
Availability	unrestricted
Abstract Recent studies have shown that the influence of gang membership is a more detrimental predictor of delinquency than the association with delinquent peers alone. A recent survey reported the existence of at least 1,500 gangs and over 65,000 gang members in Florida. Furthermore, statistics also reveal that Florida currently has the most rapidly growing gang population in comparison to all other states. This study examines and compares the predictors of gang membership in three South Florida counties with the highest gang membership rates, Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach, by evaluating risk factors at the community, family, school, peer and individual level. Using the Florida Substance Abuse Survey Data, the study seeks to examine the risk factors predictive of gang memberships that are present in the three counties, how the exposures to multiple risk factors increase the odds of gang memberships and how they compare in exposure to risk factors. Logistic regressions are employed to identify significant predictors of gang membership net of the effects of race and gender. Implications for policy and gang intervention programs are discussed.
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