NCJ Number
162927
Date Published
1996
Length
86 pages
Annotation
The Redirectional Method (RM) is advocated as a replicable, nondirective, and nonjudgmental therapeutic model that can change antisocial gang attitudes and behaviors into prosocial behaviors; as gang members become increasingly aware of their individual competencies, group cohesiveness declines and independence increases.
Abstract
The fundamental hypothesis of RM is that destructive behaviors can be redirected into constructive behaviors when youth believe they are important. The underlying philosophy of RM is that neighborhood adolescent gangs are essentially friendship gangs whose members are not inordinately disturbed and who exhibit positive characteristics that can be exploited to redirect behavior into constructive channels. The book examines the adolescent gang as a low-income minority phenomenon consisting of members in an age range from middle school through early adulthood. The book has four sections: (1) historical and sociological development of youth gangs and gang programs in the United States; (2) group theory perspective on gangs; (3) philosophy and practice principles of RM as a method with the potential for significantly enhancing the mainstream potential of gang members and reducing violence and the adolescent gang problem; and (4) case examples of RM implementation. 47 references and 16 photographs