A Comparative Study of Violent Extremism and Gangs, United States, 1948-2018 (ICPSR 37386)
Version Date: Jan 27, 2021 View help for published
Principal Investigator(s): View help for Principal Investigator(s)
Gary LaFree, University of Maryland;
Scott H. Decker, Arizona State University;
David Pyrooz, University of Colorado-Boulder
https://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR37386.v1
Version V1
Summary View help for Summary
The study assesses the extent of commonalities between individuals who become involved in violent extremist groups and criminal gangs, and the processes by which individuals engage in each group. Following this comparison, the extent to which the empirical results support the potential for anti-gang programs to bolster the resilience of communities against violent extremism and other forms of crime is assessed.
Quantitative assessment was conducted by comparing individuals included in the Profiles of Individual Radicalization in the United States (PIRUS) dataset with a subset of individuals drawn from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY97) along a number of demographic, social, and socioeconomic characteristics.
Supplementary survey data was also collected from 45 former and current gang members in the United States concurrently with long-form interviews, covering a range of variables including background characteristics, demographic information, and attitudes among the respondents.
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Geographic Coverage View help for Geographic Coverage
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City
Restrictions View help for Restrictions
Access to these data is restricted. Users interested in obtaining these data must complete a Restricted Data Use Agreement, specify the reasons for the request, and obtain IRB approval or notice of exemption for their research.
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Date of Collection View help for Date of Collection
Data Collection Notes View help for Data Collection Notes
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For a complete description of the PIRUS dataset, please refer to ICPSR study 36309.
Study Purpose View help for Study Purpose
The overarching purpose of this study is to provide an empirical assessment of the extent to which there are commonalities between the types of individuals who become involved in violent extremist groups and criminal gangs, as well as the processes by which individuals engage in each type of group. Following this comparison, the extent to which the empirical results comparing violent extremist group members and gangs support the potential for anti-gang programs to be used more generally to bolster the resilience of communities to violent extremism and other forms of crime is assessed.
Study Design View help for Study Design
To quantitatively assess the similarities and differences between political extremists and gang members in the United States, individuals included in the Profiles of Individual Radicalization in the United States (PIRUS) dataset with a subset of individuals drawn from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY97) were compared along a number of demographic, social, and socioeconomic characteristics.
Additionally, this data deposit includes supplementary survey data collected from 45 former and current gang members in the United States. The survey data were collected concurrently with long-form interviews, and address a range of variables concerning background characteristics, demographic information, and attitudes among the respondents.
Time Method View help for Time Method
Universe View help for Universe
Individuals espousing Islamist, far right, far left, or single issue ideologies who have radicalized within the United States to the point of committing ideologically motivated illegal violent or non-violent acts, joining a designated terrorist organization, or associating with an extremist organization whose leader(s) has/have been indicted of an ideologically motivated violent offense.
Unit(s) of Observation View help for Unit(s) of Observation
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Description of Variables View help for Description of Variables
US-Based Extremism Data
Variables contained within are primarily demographic, social, and socioeconomic in nature. Individuals are anonymized and assigned a unique identifier (Subject_ID). Variables in this dataset are meant to provide a general profile of radicalized individuals along information such as gang and religious affiliation, nation of birth, and places of residence within the US.
Gang Member Survey Data
Variables contained within are primarily demographic, social, and socioeconomic in nature. Individuals are anonymized and assigned a unique identifier. Variables in this dataset are meant to provide a comprehensive qualitative understanding of a relatively small sample of individuals from a distinct population, including information such as socioeconomic status during childhood, gang affiliation and criminal history, and current circumstances.
HideOriginal Release Date View help for Original Release Date
2021-01-27
Version History View help for Version History
2021-01-27 ICPSR data undergo a confidentiality review and are altered when necessary to limit the risk of disclosure. ICPSR also routinely creates ready-to-go data files along with setups in the major statistical software formats as well as standard codebooks to accompany the data. In addition to these procedures, ICPSR performed the following processing steps for this data collection:
- Performed consistency checks.
- Performed recodes and/or calculated derived variables.
- Checked for undocumented or out-of-range codes.
Notes
The public-use data files in this collection are available for access by the general public. Access does not require affiliation with an ICPSR member institution.
One or more files in this data collection have special restrictions. Restricted data files are not available for direct download from the website; click on the Restricted Data button to learn more.