My Strategy/Plan for Gang Research

As I said in my previous post, I still plan on using the Archival Research method for my research on gangs. I will be focusing mainly on what reels young people into joining gangs. I'm going to focus on kids under the age 18, and their environments in which they grew up in, and see how that affects and plays into their decision into joining a gang.

I will be looking at statistics on all different aspects. I will use statistics from the Federal Bureau of Investigations, and others sources such as Court Service Unit of Virginia and the University of Nebraska studies. The statistics I will be using from the FBI are: gangs demographics, total number of gangs from the year 2000 to now, percentage of gangs who are under 18, and how many gang members are in poverty or come from a low income family. 

As well as statistics from various sources, I will be including a video from YouTube. I will try to find a video on a teenager being interviewed on why he or she joined a gang in the first place.

I picked this area on the topic of gangs because I find it really intriguing. I am extremely curious on why kids under 18 join gangs. I want to explore their surroundings and environment, and get some insight on why they felt they needed to join a gang.