The State of Knowledge about Street Gangs. New Perspectives on Young People Who Join Gangs
This article presents new information about the street gang phenomenon derived from a critical review of literature on the subject. The review concentrates on articles published after 1997, when the first such literature review was published in Quebec. Comparing both reviews, it appears that not only has knowledge about some aspects of the subject developed significantly but also that the way of approaching the subject has been literally transformed. In this article we focus specifically on the process of both joining and leaving gangs, on gang violence, and on the personal characteristics of youth who join gangs, an area where this transformation has been particularly striking. In closing, we suggest some ideas about the possible effects of intervention on youth who are part of these groups.