Background: Focused deterrence strategies attempt to increase punishment risks faced by violent gangs through the development of new and creative ways of deploying traditional and non-traditional law enforcement tools. In addition to increasing the swiftness and certainty of sanctions, these strategies explicitly communicate incentives and disincentives to deter likely gang offenders from violent behavior.
Objective: This study seeks to determine whether focused deterrence strategies generate spillover deterrent effects on the gun violence behaviors of vicariously treated gangs that were socially tied to directly treated violent gangs.
Research Design: A nonrandomized quasi-experimental design was used to evaluate the gun violence reduction effects of focused deterrence strategies on directly treated gangs and vicariously treated gangs. Propensity score matching techniques were used to identify balanced comparison gangs for the vicariously treated gangs. Growth curve regression models were used to analyze gun violence trends for treated gangs relative to comparison gangs.
Unit Of Analysis: Quarterly counts of fatal and non-fatal shootings involving specific street gangs between 2006 and 2010 served as the units of analysis.
Measures: Key outcome measures included quarterly shootings committed by specific gangs, shooting victimizations suffered by specific gangs, and the total number of shootings involving specific gangs.
Results: The focused deterrence strategy was associated with statistically significant reductions in total shootings by directly treated gangs and vicariously treated gangs.
Conclusions: Our study finds that vicariously treated gangs were deterred by the treatment experiences of their rivals and allies. This suggests that focused deterrence strategies can generate spillover crime reduction effects to gangs that are socially connected to directly treated gangs.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0193841X13518535 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Associations between childbirth, gang exposure and substance use among young women in Cape Town, South Africa.
Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy
August 2024
Substance Use, Gender, and Applied Research Program, RTI International, 3040 E. Cornwallis Road, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27709, USA.
The prevalence and influence of gangs on adolescents and young adults remain a concern in Western Cape, South Africa-particularly as they have one of the largest gang presence. While less attention has been focused on young women, there is a need to elucidate the relationship between gang exposure and health behaviors, such substance use, in addition to understanding whether becoming a caregiver impacts this relationship. This study uses baseline data from 496 participants enrolled in a NIDA-funded R01 trial that recruited young women aged 16 to 19 who were out of school and reported recent alcohol or other drug use and sexual risk behavior.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Focused deterrence (FD) is a frequently cited intervention for preventing violence, particularly against violent urban gangs. The Youth Endowment Fund (YEF) believes it could be effective in the UK, based primarily on research conducted in the US. However, we contend that these studies have inadequate methodological designs, lack of rigorous testing, and small sample sizes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAn Academic-Community Partnership to Address Gun Violence in the Roseland Neighborhood of Chicago.
Fam Community Health
February 2024
Public Health Program, DePaul University, Chicago, Illinois (Dr Schober); Pediatric Critical Care, UChicago Medicine, Chicago, Illinois (Dr Wolf); Sinai Chicago: Sinai Urban Health Institute, Chicago, Illinois (Mr Castro); School of Public Health, Loyola University, Maywood, Illinois (Ms Slezak); Clinical Psychology, Adler University, Chicago, Illinois (Ms Hastings); and Kids Off The Block, Chicago, Illinois (Ms Latiker).
Background And Objectives: Gun violence is the leading cause of death for youth. This study examined an academic-community partnership to address gun violence through a strength-based approach called Asset-Based Community Development.
Methods: We used a case study design.
Reducing the risk of criminal exploitation using multi-systemic therapy (the RESET Study): study protocol for a feasibility study and process evaluation.
Pilot Feasibility Stud
November 2023
Centre for Research in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (CIDD), University of Warwick, Coventry, UK.
Background: Child criminal exploitation is a form of child abuse that poses a serious risk to the welfare, safety, and wellbeing of young people. Multisystemic therapy (MST) is an intensive family and community-based intervention for young people with anti-social behavioral problems, many of whom will be at risk of criminal exploitation. This protocol describes a pilot feasibility study and process evaluation, designed to examine MST for children at risk of criminal exploitation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFImproving the livelihoods of justice-involved youth: Study protocol for a replication and extension of Functional Family Therapy-Gangs.
Contemp Clin Trials
June 2023
Institute of Behavioral Science, University of Colorado Boulder, 1440 15th St., Boulder, CO 80309, United States of America. Electronic address:
Background: This study will evaluate Functional Family Therapy-Gangs (FFT-G), an extension of a family-based therapeutic intervention-Functional Family Therapy (FFT)-designed to help troubled youth exhibiting mild to severe behavior problems overcome delinquency, substance abuse, and violence. FFT-G, however, addresses risk factors that are typically more salient among gang than delinquent populations. A randomized control trial with adjudicated youth in Philadelphia revealed reductions in recidivism over an 18-month period.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!