Young girls all over the world are facing huge issues that drastically affect their lives in many ways. Socioeconomic factors influence deviant behavior and gang affiliation amongst Afican American women. In the African American communities, usually in the inner city, there is preexisting knowledge about gangs. Children are obtaining knowledge about gang violence both indirectly and directly. Indirect knowledge is obtained by television, movies, and intervention programs. Direct knowledge is obtained by gang members living in a household where there are younger children in the household as well. If these children are not seeing gang members in their homes, they are easily seeing them in their neighborhoods and communities. Studies researched by Cadwallader and Cairns found that by the age of five years old, most children have already been exposed to violence and gang activities in their communities (Source: Cadwallader and Cairns 2002).
Peer Influence
Once children have been exposed to violence and gang activities, they develop the desire to imitate those exposures. Peer influence plays a great role in the desire to imitate deviant behaviors. Children see that with violence and gang activities how quick and easy it is obtain personal success such as money, cars, and “flashy” things. Merton's theory, “goal mean gap,” states that a person wants to obtain a goal, but lacks the legit means to obtain it, which leads to pressure and later results in deviant behavior in order to obtain that goal. Another theory would be the Sutherland “Differential Association” theory. This theory states that if the friends and peers that a person hangs around with are deviant, so is that person. They are more than likely to be participating in those same acts of deviance as their friends and peers. Children who spend a great amount of time with their peers who participate in deviant behavior create a strong correlation of delinquency and substance abuse. Children who abuse drugs such as cigarettes and marijuana are prone to be affiliated with gangs (Source: Cureton 2009; Dishon, Nelson, and Yasui 2005; Wright, Fitzpatrick, and Kevin M. 2006).
Lack of Familiar Structure
Children that participate in deviant behavior and are affiliated with gangs usually lack a family structure in the household. A lot of the time the parents are out working endless jobs and do not have the time to give their children the attention that they need. Most of the times these parents are single parents who find it difficult to raise children on their own. In some cases, the parents may be abusing drugs or even in prison. Situations such as those leads children to become emotional and develop behavioral problems. Burke's research found that emotional and behavioral problems were two to three times higher among children in single-parent homes. Relationships with parents usually are not well structured. Many children develop resentment against parents who do not give them the attention that they need, which results in rebellion and more time away from home. Gangs tend to create a family structure that accepts those who are looking for a family structure. They are able to function like a family because they share a common bond of brotherhood and sisterhood (Source: Burke 1991; Burnett 1999; Danyko, Alira, and Martinez 2002; Fleisher and Krienert 2004; Ruble and Nikki M. 2000; Valdez, Mikow, and Cepeda 2006).
In conclusion, I have drawn from these studies and sources that there are many factors that occur within childhood that can lead to criminality such as deviant behaviors and gang affiliation. These factors were things such preexisting knowledge of gangs and delinquency, peer pressure, and lack of family structure. The African American community is prone to having all of these factors within it, which increases the criminality of the African American women. The thing that we can do as a mentor is to be upfront and honest about the situations and issues, but also be there to give reasonable solutions to those things. Let them know that there is a better way of living and society wants them to think that this is the only way of life, but that is false. Young girls really need our support and our positive influence in their lives. Let's stand together and help them through their troubling times of their backgrounds and help them enter into a new, bright future! Young girls have a right to live above the influence and long, healthy, strong lives!
