Industrial Organization of Street Gangs

Economists have long studied the determinants and organization of commercial enterprises, but few researchers have applied these theories in the context of criminal street gangs. Past research on street gangs has focused primarily on a single gang's activity or on gang activity in a single city. The authors examined more broadly the industrial organization of street gangs by using a survey of law enforcement on gang structure, size, and activity in 200 U.S. cities. The authors identified empirical factors that determine the average gang size, number of gangs in a city, number of gang-related homicides, and gang-related drive-by shootings. In addition, the authors looked at two hypotheses drawn from within the economics literature - the role of ethnic fractionalization on gang activity and the role gangs perform as protective associations - to better understand criminal street gangs.

Find the article online at National Criminal Justice Reference Service.