Deck 8: Urban Gangs and Violence

Question 1

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic shared by large cities experiencing serious gang violence?

A) socioeconomic disadvantage
B) large resources for indigent defense
C) racial/ethnic heterogeneity
D) large immigrant population

Answer 1

B

Question 2

According to Howell, Egley, and colleagues, which of the following is a primary indicator of serious gang violence?

A) assault
B) rape
C) armed robbery
D) homicide

Answer 2

D

Question 3

From 1996 to 2009, cities in which state evidenced the greatest proportion of gang-related homicides?

A) Illinois
B) Massachusetts
C) California
D) Texas

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Which region of the country experiences generally low and relatively stable trends in gang violence?

A) Northeast
B) West
C) Midwest
D) South

Question 5

Which of the following motives for gang homicides refers to a feud between the victim and the offender(s)?

A) drug-related disputes
B) personal vendettas
C) rolling out
D) gang rivalries

Question 6

Which of the following is true of all the cities profiled in the case studies on gang problems in cities?

A) They are considered larger cities.
B) They each have very small annual homicide rates.
C) They are smaller cities.
D) They are considered medium-sized cities.

Question 7

The case study of Abilene, TX, reveals it is a ______ city with a ______ gang problem.

A) small; small
B) small; large
C) large; small
D) large; large

Question 8

All of the following are examples of conditions associated with the formation of violent gangs across the country, EXCEPT ______.

A) social unrest from changing urban structures
B) shared socioeconomic disadvantages
C) blocked access to well-paying jobs
D) decreased levels of immigration

Question 9

When are law enforcement agents most likely to deny a gang problem?

A) never
B) during the initial stages
C) at its height
D) as gang membership is declining

Question 10

All of the following are components of common law enforcement reactions to gang presence in communities EXCEPT ______.

A) denial
B) minimization
C) recognition
D) overreaction

Question 11

Springfield's "C3" approach for combating gang activity implies all of the following EXCEPT ______.

A) it was modeled after both armed services strategy and community policing programs
B) intelligence gathering is a critical component
C) the importance of engaging local, non-gang-involved residents
D) gang-involved youth need to be temporarily removed from their communities to successfully intervene in their problematic behaviors

Question 12

The vast majority of gang members in Boise are ______.

A) White
B) Black
C) Latino
D) Asian

Question 13

Which of the following is NOT an example of a strategy employed by Inglewood's police in response to the city's gang problems?

A) controlling police-involved shootings
B) patrols to hotspots of gang activity
C) stop and frisk policing
D) facilitating employment opportunities for gang members

Question 14

Which of the following is NOT an example of a contextual factor that is believed to be associated with greater gang activity in larger cities?

A) A city that has higher than average levels of drug activity
B) A city with a large budget for its prosecutors
C) A city with above-average correctional spending compared with federal averages
D) A city without a "pulling levers" program

Question 15

Findings in Pittsburgh, PA, that non-gang-related drug trafficking coexists with gang involvement in the drug trade are similar to what phenomenon described by Ousey and Lee (2004)?

A) preexisting social conditions
B) drug-related factors
C) period effect
D) grid squares

Question 16

Which of the following is an example of how social networks can aid understanding to the observed uneven risk of homicide in high-risk communities?

A) Network analyses reveal a recent homicide victim was the leader of a local gang.
B) Network analyses can better identify individuals who live in poor neighborhoods.
C) Network analyses illustrate how gang-related violence is typically anonymous and random.
D) Network analyses are typically not used to study gang-related homicides.

Question 17

In a given large city, which of the following is NOT a contextual influence on serious street gang violence?

A) access to firearms
B) levels of drug activity
C) levels of poverty
D) number of police officers

Question 18

Which of the following is NOT a finding from research in Boston and Chicago regarding the correlates of gang-related homicide?

A) seeking payback
B) pursuing improved social status
C) social group processes
D) skipping school

Question 19

Out of all homicides, the proportion associated with gangs has been relatively stable over the past 20 years despite which co-occurring phenomenon?

A) decreased immigration
B) the growth of rural populations
C) increased gun control
D) a sharp decline in the national crime rate

Question 20

Which of the following is measured using the National Youth Gang Survey (NYGS)?

A) number of active gangs in a given jurisdiction
B) number of gang members in a given jurisdiction
C) number of gang homicides in a given jurisdiction
D) level of immigration in a given jurisdiction

Question 21

SELECT ALLTHAT APPLY. Egley and Howell (2010) define the "very largest cities" as those having populations of what size?

A) greater than 100,000 people
B) greater than 150,000 people
C) greater than 200,000 people
D) greater than 250,000 people

Question 22

SELECT ALLTHAT APPLY. Which of the following structural characteristics of gangs do Egley and Howell (2010) associate with higher levels of gang-related homicides?

A) age
B) gender
C) geographic territory
D) race/ethnicity

Question 23

What does the "O" in "OG" stand for?

A) official
B) old
C) original
D) other

Question 24

Which of the following are proposed explanations for the connection between gangs and the geography of violent crime?

A) Gang members are strongly attached to the territory their group controls.
B) Gang alliances can extend territorial ownership.
C) Gang members defend their territory from other groups.
D) Gangs randomly select blocks throughout the city to control.

Question 25

Which of the following factors does law enforcement view as the most influential in local gang violence?

A) carrying weapons
B) number of gangs
C) intergang conflict
D) drug-related activity

Question 26

Nearly 100% of all gang homicides take place in a small number of larger cities and their surrounding counties.

Question 27

The authors' analysis of the UCR (Uniform Crime Reports) reveals that homicides reported in the majority of large cities were increasingly attributable to gang activity between 1996 and 2012.

Question 28

Relative to other large cities, Chicago reported the highest proportion of gang-related homicides in 2012.

Question 29

The movie Boyz n the Hood was inspired by a city with the lowest proportion of gang-related homicides between 1996 and 2012.

Question 30

In Springfield, MA, the local police department was the first arm of law enforcement to recognize an emerging trend in gang-driven violence.

Question 31

New Jersey's Department of Corrections created a gang management unit to control violence in prisons that was associated with activity on the streets.

Question 32

Youth gang members are more likely than non-gang members to carry a gun.

Question 33

Gang membership is not related to victimization risk.

Question 34

Structural characteristics of large cities have no influence on a city's level of gang activity.

Question 35

The notion that violence is "passed on" in gang networks reflects the norms of retaliation and respect.

Question 36

There is an inverse relationship between a location's population and reported gang problems.

Question 37

What three main observations did Howell, Egley, and colleagues (2011) make in their trajectory models of gang-related homicides in very large cities?

Question 38

What are three of the five indicators of gang institutionalization proposed by Hagedorn (2008)?

Question 39

Describe the concept of "cohesion." How does it apply to gangs and their members and influence their levels of violence?