It is widely recognized that street gangs are connected with violence. Aggressive and violent youths are at greater risk of joining collectivities that we call street gangs or troublesome youth groups. But it is also true that such groups themselves promote and facilitate violence. Various authors have reported on the symbolic or group-enhancing importance of violence in street gangs, and violence is also often a means for illegal activity and maintaining a territory. Many European countries face such youth groups, which may be called street gangs although researchers and policy makers often hesitate to call them this because they compare their own groups to American stereotypes . Indications exist that there is a growth in street gang problems in different countries in Europe. Therefore, the study of European street gangs and troublesome youth groups may be very important for understanding better the causes of youth violence in European countries.
This is exactly what FRAME GANG is planning to do: identify the professionals supporting communities affected by gangs, identify their common characteristics in terms of competencies and develop a “navigation tool” presenting major areas of competencies, specialized competencies, proficiency levels connected to EQF and examples of knowledge / behavior / skills. This navigation tool will help all professionals understand what is needed to address gangs.
Our objectives are: