Without considering whether they have committed crimes or not, in your opinion,

Question

1. Without considering whether they have committed crimes or not, in your opinion, should gang members be considered deviant? If so, use the structural -functional and symbolic - interaction approaches to explain why young men in particular might be drawn to gangs. What could be some of the negative results of labeling these young people as deviant?
2. What might explain the increase of gang problems in smaller or rural communities? Why might gang members be more prone to commit crimes? What could be done to avert young people from joining gangs?

1. Without considering whether they have committed crimes or not, in your opinion, should gang members be considered deviant? If so, use the structural -functional and symbolic - interaction approaches to explain why young men in particular might be drawn to gangs. What could be some of the negative results of labeling these young people as deviant?
2. What might explain the increase of gang problems in smaller or rural communities? Why might gang members be more prone to commit crimes? What could be done to avert young people from joining gangs?

Explanation / Answer

Note: This response is in UK English, please paste the response to MS Word and you should be able to spot discrepancies easily. You may elaborate the answer based on personal views or your classwork if necessary.

(Answer) A gang symbolises a fraternity of rebels that might work from outside of the civil societal structure. Gangs generally have a simple flat structure where there is a leader and gang members. The function of a general gang is to represent a rebellion against inequality, uneven distribution of resources, lack of opportunity etc.

It is not young men, but rather young men from poor neighbourhoods that are drawn to gangs. This is because it is rare for a gang to form and function in a rich neighbourhood where resources and opportunities are in abundance.

Young men from smaller and rural communities are likely to be drawn to a gang because of the “social strain theory.” According to Robert Merton, a “social strain theory” is when an individual is expected to live up to certain societal standards but, society doesn’t give them the means to achieve them. For instance, it is the American dream to own a house, have a car, have one’s children educated in private schools etc. However, laws have not provided for housing concessions, private schools aren’t cheap, petrol is pricey etc.

Similarly, gangs are full of people who are at the receiving end of such a strain and might finally act out by forming a gang.

Labelling these individuals as “gangs” even when they do not commit crimes is being more unfair towards them than society already is. Allowing them to have better opportunities with education, jobs, specialised studies for professional occupations etc. would be better than simply labelling them. In this way, they might be eventually labelled as civic members of society as opposed to being called, “gang members.”

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