Abstract
Since the late 1980s, criminologists have been interestedin analyzing Asian gangs. Despite the rather sharp increasein books and articles published on the subject in the1990s, there appears to exist no consensus on the nature and etiologyof Asian gangs. This paper describes the current state ofresearch on Asian gangs and assesses whether or not thereis a dominant criminological theory on their cause. Itcompares and contrasts African American and Asian gangs,and closes with research and policy recommendations.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Anderson, Elijah, Street Wise (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1990).
Bresler, Fenton, The Chinese Mafia (New York: Stein and Day, 1981).
Bursik, Robert and Harold Grasmick, Neighborhoods and Crime: The Dimensions of Effective Community Control (New York: Lexington Books, 1993).
Chin, Ko-Lin, Chinatown Ganqs: Extortion, Enterprise, and Ethnicity (New York: Oxford University Press, 1996).
Chin, Ko-Lin and Jeffrey Fagan, “Social Order and Gang Formation In Chinatown,” Advances in Criminoloqical Theory 1994 (6), 216–251.
Chin, Ko-Lin, Robert Kelly and Jeffery Fagan, “Methodological Issues in Studying Chinese Gang Extortion,” The Gang Journal 1993 (1:2), 25–36.
Chin, Ko-Lin, Jeffrey Fagan and Robert Kelly, “Patterns of Chinese Gang Extortion,” Justice Quarterly 1992 (9), 625–646.
Chin, Ko-Lin, Chinese Subculture and Criminality: Non-Traditional Crime Groups in America (New York: Greenwood Press, 1990a).
Chin, Ko-Lin, Triad Societies, Tongs, Organized Crime, and Street Gangs in Asia and the U.S. (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1990b).
Cloward, Richard and Lloyd Ohlin, Delinquency and Opportunity: A Theory of Delinquent Gangs (Glencoe, Illinois: Free Press, 1960).
Covey, Herbert, Scott Menard and Robert Franzase, Juvenile Gangs (Springfield: Charles C. Thomas, 1997).
Curry, G. and Irving Spergel, “Gang Involvement and Delinquency Among Hispanic and African-American Adolescent Males,” Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 1992 (29), 273–291.
Daye, Douglas, Asian Crime and Cultures (New York: CRC Press, 1997).
Fagan, J., “The Social Organization of Drug Use and Drug Dealing Among Urban Gangs,” Criminology 1989 (27), 633–667.
Fagan, J., “Social Processes of Delinquency and Drug Use Among Urban Urban Gangs,” In C.R. Huff (ed.) Gangs in America (Newbury Park: Sage Publications, 1990).
Hagedorn, John, “The Emperor's New Clothes: Theory and method in Gang Field Research,” Free Inquiry in Creative Sociology 1996 (24), 111–122.
Hagedorn, John, “Gangs, Neighborhoods, and Public Policy,” Social Problems 1991 (38), 529–542.
Hagedorn, John, “Back in the Field Again: Gang Research in the Nineties,” In C.R. Huff (ed.), Gangs in America (Newbury Park: Sage Publications, 1990).
Hagedorn, John, People and Folks: Gangs, Crime and the Underclass in a Rust Belt City (Chicago: Lake View Press, 1988).
Huff, C. Ronald (ed.), Gangs in America (Newbury Park: Sage Publications, 1990).
Hunt, Geoffrey, Karen Joe and Dan Waldorf, “Culture and Ethnic Identity among Southeast Asian Gang Members,” Free Inquiry in Creative Sociology 1997 (25), 9–21.
Joe, D. and. Robinson, “Chinatown's Immigrant Gangs,” Criminology 1980 (4), 337–345.
Joe, Karen, “The New Criminal Conspiracy? Asian Gangs and Organized Crime in San Francisco,” Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 1994a (31), 390–415.
Joe, Karen, “Myths and Realities of Asian Gangs on the West Coast,” Humanity and Society 1994b (18), 3–18.
Kinkaid, Gwen, Chinatown: A Portrait of a Closed Society (New York: Harper and Collins, 1992).
Klein, Malcolm, The American Street Gang (New York: Oxford University Press, 1995).
Klein, Malcolm, Cheryl Maxson and Lewa Cunningham, “Crack, Street Gangs, and Violence,” Criminology 1991 (29), 623–650.
Landre, Rick, Mike Miller and Dee Porter, Gangs: A Handbook for Community Awareness (New York: Facts on File, Inc., 1997).
Lasley, James, “Age, Social Context, and Street Gang Membership: Are ‘Youth’ Gangs Becoming ‘Adult’ Gangs,” Youth and Society 1992 (23), 434–451.
Long, Du Phuoc, The Dream Shattered: Vietnamese Ganqs in America (Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1996).
Mark, Gregory, “Oakland Chinatown's First Youth Gang: The Suey Sing Boys,” Free Inquiry in Creative Sociology 1997 (25), 41–50.
Mays, G. Larry (ed.), Gangs and Gang Behavior (Chicago: Nelson-Hail Pubishers, 1997).
Miller, Walter, Crime by Youth Gangs and Groups in the United States. National Institute for Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, U.S. Department of Justice. (Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing office, 1982).
Miller, Walter, Violence by Youth Gangs and Youth Groups as a Crime Problem in Major American Cities. National Institute for Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, U.S. Department of Justice. (Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1975).
Moore, Joan, “Gangs, Drugs, and Violence,” In Scott Cummings and Daniel Monti (eds.), Gangs (New York: State University of New York Press, 1993).
Oliver, W., “Sexual Conquest and Patterns of Black-on-Black Violence: A Structural-Cultural Perspective,” Violence and Victims 1989 (4), 257–273.
Posner, Gerald, Warlords of Crime (San Francisco: McGraw Hill Books, 1988).
Rice, B., “The New Gangs of Chinatown,” Psychology Today 1977 (10), 60–69.
Sampson, Robert and W. Groves, “Community Structure and Crime: Testing Social Disorganization Theory,” American Journal of Sociology 1989 (94), 774–802.
Sheu, Chuen-Jim, Delinquency and Identity: Juvenile Delinquency in an American Chinatown (New York: Harrow and Heston, 1986).
Simon, Ronald and Phyllis Gray, “Perceived Blocked Opportunity as an Explanation of Delinquency Among Lower Class Black Males: A Research Note,” Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 1989 (26), 90–101.
Song, John-Huey, J. Dombrink and C. Geis, “Lost in the Melting Pot: Asian Youth Gangs in the United States,” Gang Journal 1992 (1), 1–12.
Spergel, Irving, The Youth Gang Problem: A Community Approach (New York: Oxford University Press, 1995).
Spergel, Irving, “Youth Gangs: An Essay Review,” Social Service Review 1992 (66), 121–140.
Sung, Betty, “The Deviants-Chinatown Gangs,” In The Adjustment Experience of Chinese Immigrant Children in New York City (New York: Center for Immigration Studies, 1987).
Toy, Calvin, “Coming out to Play: Reasons to Join and Participate In Asian Gangs,” Gang Journal 1992 (1), 13–30.
U.S. Department of Justice, Report on Asian Organized Crime, Criminal Division (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1988).
U.S. Department of Justice, Oriental Organized Crime: A Report of a Research Project Conducted by the Organized Crime Section Federal Bureau of Investigation, Criminal Investigative Division. (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1985).
Vigil, J.D. and S.C. Yun, “Vietnamese Youth Gangs in Southern California,” In C.R. Huff (ed.), Gangs in America (Newbury Park: Sage, 1990).
Wang, Z., “Is the Pattern of Asian Gang Affiliation Different? A Multiple Regression Analysis,” Journal of Crime and Justice 1996 (19), 113–128.
Wang, Z., “Gang Affiliation among Asian-American High School Students: A Path Analysis of Social Developmental Model,” Journal of Gang Research 1995 (3), 1–13.
Wilson, William, The Truly Disadvantaged: The Inner City, The Underclass, and Public Policy (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Tsunokai, G.T., Kposowa, A.J. Asian gangs in the United States: The current state of the research literature. Crime, Law and Social Change 37, 37–50 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1013394320338
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1013394320338