TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2013//
TI  - Measuring gang membership in England and Wales: A latent class analysis with Eurogang survey questions
JO  - European journal of criminology
A1  - Medina, Juanjo
A1  - Aldridge, Judith
A1  - Shute, Jon
A1  - Ross, Andy
SP  - 591
EP  - 605
VL  - 10
IS  - 5
N2  - This paper examines the conceptual and empirical adequacy of the Eurogang Network's survey measurement of gang membership. Using data from a nationally representative survey of young people in England and Wales, we employed a latent class analysis to model variation in the characteristics of peer groups. We found that while Eurogang survey items identified a distinct group of young people involved in more frequent and serious offending, this definition also extended to a separate group whose only 'vice' was recreational drug use. We discuss the conceptual validity of extending the 'gang' label to this latter group, together with the pressing need for more developmentally sensitive measures of peer networks in adolescence.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1477-3708
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1477370813475393
ID  - ref1
ER  -