Serving gang-involved Latino youth: Strengths and service gaps for a community violence prevention plan

Youth gang violence in Latino communities is associated with injury, loss of life, risky health behaviors, and considerable economic costs. This problem is not only important in Latino communities in the US but also in Central American countries, especially El Salvador. Increased scientific evidence about high risk youth and youth Latino gang members is needed to create more effective community violence prevention programs. This paper presents preliminary evidence from an ongoing study, the Comparative Latino Youth Gang Project, which is comprised of a sample of 205 high risk youth and Latino gang members in San Salvador and 367 in Boston. This paper examined an array of protective and risk factors across these sites. Three scales were used to assess protective factors: readiness to change, empathy, and social support. Five scales were employed to assess risk factors: risky sexual behavior, level of gang involvement, physical aggression, and general and official delinquency. Chi-square proportional tests, Independent sample t-tests, and nonparametric tests of association and accompanying effect sizes were computed to assess similarities and differences across study sites. Research findings indicated higher levels of risks and fewer protective mechanisms for gang-involved youth generally and Salvadorian youth in particular. This study serves to substantiate the importance of developing effective violence prevention programs for Latino youth in the US and abroad.