National Youth Gang Survey Analysis

Methodology

Agencies included in the two nationally representative NYGS samples are as follows:

1996–2001 NYGS Sample (Former Sample):

  • All police departments serving cities with populations of 25,000 or more (n=1,216).
  • All suburban county police and sheriffs’ departments (n=661).
  • A randomly selected sample of police departments serving cities with populations between 2,500 and 24,999 (n=398).
  • A randomly selected sample of rural county police and sheriffs’ departments (n=743).

2002–Present NYGS Sample (Current Sample):

  • All police departments serving cities with populations of 50,000 or more (n=624).
  • All suburban county police and sheriffs’ departments (n=739).
  • A randomly selected sample of police departments serving cities with populations between 2,500 and 49,999 (n=543).
  • A randomly selected sample of rural county police and sheriffs’ departments (n=492).

Hereafter, larger cities refers to cities with populations of 50,000 or more, and smaller cities refers to cities with populations between 2,500 and 49,999. Finally, study population refers to the entire group of jurisdictions that the current sample represents; that is, all jurisdictions served by county law enforcement agencies and all jurisdictions with populations of 2,500 or more served by city (e.g., municipal) police departments.

Sixty-three percent of the agencies in the 2002–present NYGS sample were also surveyed from 1996 to 2001, permitting an ongoing longitudinal assessment of gang problems in a large number of jurisdictions.

The average annual survey response rate is approximately 85 percent for the entire sample, as well as within each area type. Ninety-nine percent of the respondents in the current sample have provided gang-related information in at least one survey year. Survey recipients were asked to report information solely for youth gangs, defined as “a group of youths or young adults in your jurisdiction that you or other responsible persons in your agency or community are willing to identify as a ‘gang.’” Motorcycle gangs, hate or ideology groups, prison gangs, and exclusively adult gangs were excluded from the survey.

Table of Contents

Suggested citation: National Youth Gang Center (2009). National Youth Gang Survey Analysis. Retrieved [date] from http://www.nationalgangcenter.gov/Survey-Analysis