Corrigenda: Ikhwanuddin MEM, Amal MNA, Aziz A, Sepet J, Talib A, Ismail MS, Jamil NR (2017) Inventory of fishes in the upper Pelus River (Perak river basin, Perak, Malaysia). Check List 13 (4): 315-325. https://doi.org/10.15560/13.4.315

Gang membership, gender, and sexual behavior in and outside a romantic relationship

Prior research consistently finds that gang youth, compared to nongang youth, are more involved in risky behaviors such as violence and drug sales. Less attention has been given to comparisons in sexual behavior. While research demonstrates that gang membership is associated with risky sex and many gang members indicate that sex is a motivation for joining a gang, prior research is limited in its ability to account for self-selection into a gang, variations in involvement across gender, and different forms of sexual activity. This research addresses these limitations by using Add Health data and propensity score matching to examine the relationship between gang membership and sexual behavior inside and out of a romantic relationship as well as how this relationship differs by gender. While findings indicate that gang membership increases the likelihood of sexual intercourse, nonromantic sex, and the number of nonromantic sex partners, no unique gender differences were identified.

The Impact of Residing in a Gang Territory on Adverse Birth Outcomes: Evidence from Los Angeles

Gang violence remains an ongoing crisis in many communities in the United States. This paper assesses the potential association of gang-occupied neighborhoods with birth outcomes. Adverse birth outcomes serve as a "barometer" of population health, denoting both poor conditions for human development and portending future public health concerns. We draw upon (1) Los Angeles County Vital Statistics Birth Records (2008-2012), (2) GIS information on gang territory boundaries, (3) LA city geo-coded crime data, and (4) the 2010 U.S. Census and 2006-2010 American Community Survey. We find an association between gang-occupied neighborhoods and adverse birth outcomes; however, this association is largely explained by other neighborhood socio-demographic characteristics, crime notwithstanding. We also find that gangland neighborhoods tend to exacerbate the effects of crime for all birth outcomes, but only significantly so for small for gestational age births. Lastly, gang co-residence, crime, and other neighborhood demographics explain a substantial portion of socioeconomic and racial/ethnic disparities in adverse birth outcomes. Gangland neighborhoods appear to be a novel contributor to both population health and health disparities. Future studies should address these relationships in a broad range of metropolitan settings, paying careful attention to causal linkages and moderating effects of gangs and crime.

The National Death Index as a Source of Homicide Data: A Methodological Exposition of Promises and Pitfalls for Criminologists

Criminologists largely rely on national de-identified data sources to study homicide in the United States. The National Death Index (NDI), a comprehensive and well-established database compiled by the National Center for Health Statistics, is an untapped source of homicide data that offers identifiable linkages to other data sources while retaining national coverage. This study's five aims follow. First, we review the data sources in articles published in Homicide Studies over the past decade. Second, we describe the NDI, including its origins, procedures, and uses. Third, we outline the procedures for linking a police gang intelligence database to the NDI. Fourth, we introduce the St. Louis Gang Member-Linked Mortality Files database, which is composed of 3,120 police-identified male gang members in the St. Louis area linked to NDI records. Finally, we report on preliminary cause-of-death findings. We conclude by outlining the benefits and drawbacks of the NDI as a source of homicide data for criminologists.

Substance Use Among Gang Member Adolescents and Young Adults and Associations With Friends and Family Substance Use

PROBLEM

Gang membership is an indicator of chronic substance use. Social network studies indicate that substance use in youth is related to substance use in friends and family; however, no such analyses among gang youth have been conducted.

METHODS

Interviews were conducted with a sample of young gang members (n = 60) in Los Angeles. Univariate analyses were conducted.

FINDINGS

Cigarette use in gang members was strongly associated with cigarette use in friendship networks. There were no associations for use of alcohol and marijuana.

CONCLUSIONS

Few associations emerged between substance use in participants and their friends/family. Possible explanations for these findings are presented.

Moving beyond the gang-drug-violence connection

The aim of this article is to reflect on the conceptual and methodological developments of our gang research over the past 20 years. We have conducted a large number of consecutive qualitative studies on youth gangs, drugs and alcohol in one urban locale for over two decades and have amassed a data set of over 2000 qualitative interviews. We have kept pace with the social changes in San Francisco as they have impacted and shaped youth gangs and their members' lives. However, these changes have not only occurred in the social context of gang members' lives, but have also occurred in our own thinking about how to conceptualize research on gangs. We have broadened our analysis of gang members' lives and incorporated new theoretical developments from research outside of the gang field. In addition to this shift in emphasis, our overall aim has been to redirect the research focus on youth gangs from a social problem and criminological perspective to a more sociological approach in which these youth are situated within an everyday perspective. With these overall issues in mind, we see this discussion as taking stock of the nature of gang research in the past, present and future.