LOS ANGELES — What prompts some kids to join gangs and their neighbors not to join has long baffled experts. Los Angeles city officials now think they’ll find an answer through a multiple-choice test.
“If you could identify who those at-risk kids were, then you could micro-target them with resources,” said Jeff Carr, director of the mayor’s office on gang reduction and youth development.
University of Southern California social psychologist Malcolm Klein found 10 factors that channel children into gangs, including poor parenting, justifying delinquent behavior and traumatic events. Researchers used those findings to develop the 74-question survey. A kid with at least five factors is deemed “at risk” and offered programs such as counseling, anger management and tutoring.
