Abstract
Reviewed existing literature on drug dealing and inner city adolescents that underscores a serious and worsening problem. Around one in six urban adolescents have had some involvement in drug dealing, with rates even higher for African-American males over 16. For inner city teenagers, there are a range of problems associated with drug dealing, including juvenile arrest, involvement in violence (as victims and perpetrators), substance abuse, behavioral and emotional difficulties, academic failure and dropout. In terms of etiology, three influences have received the most attention: family dysfunction, economic factors, and perceptions of drug dealing that promote involvement in it. In general, there is limited recognition of the severity of the problem of drug dealing and inner city adolescents, corresponding to an almost total lack of efforts to prevent or address it. Efforts are needed at individual, family, group, school, community, and mass media levels to address this serious and escalating problem.
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Centers, N.L., Weist, M.D. Inner City Youth and Drug Dealing: A Review of the Problem. Journal of Youth and Adolescence 27, 395–411 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022859205145
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022859205145