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Positive Individual and Social Behavior among Gang and Nongang African American Male Adolescents

Michigan State University

Richard M. Lerner

Tufts University

Alexander von Eye

Michigan State University

Deborah L. Bobek

Tufts University

Aida B. Balsano

Tufts University

Elizabeth Dowling

Tufts University

Pamela M. Anderson

Tufts University

To explore potential bases of positive development among gang youth, attributes of positive individual and social behavior were assessed in individual interviews with 45 African American adolescent male members of inner-city Detroit gangs and 50 African American adolescent males from the same communities but involved in community-based organizations aimed at promoting positive youth development. As anticipated, the groups differed in regard to the majority of interview questions and to positive attribute scores pertaining to parents/family, peer relations, school/education, drug use, sexual activity, religious activities/religiosity, racial/ethnic identity, role models/confidants, and neighborhood/safety. The correlations of attributes scores were more often significant (i.e., coupled) for the gang than for the nongang youth. Consistent with the ideas that all young people have resources pertinent to positive development and that, therefore, gang and nongang youth would have some resource comparability, across the nine attributes, about one quarter of the gang youth had total positive attribute scores that were above the average total positive attribute score for the nongang youth. Implications of these findings for both research and applications to programs seeking to promote positive youth development among diverse youth are discussed.

Key Words: positive youth development • developmental systems theory • African American • adolescent males • gang youth • community-based organizations

Journal of Adolescent Research, Vol. 18, No. 5, 496-522 (2003)
DOI: 10.1177/0743558403255067


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