Public Safety Canada Effectiveness of Street Gang Control Strategies A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Evaluation Studies

............................................................................................................................................ 4 Executive Summary .......................................................................................................................... 5 1.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 7 2.0 Methodology ............................................................................................................................... 7 3.0 Classification and Typology of Gang Prevention/Intervention Approaches ............................. 10 3.1 Prevention Strategies ............................................................................................................ 12 3.2 Gang Activity Regulation ..................................................................................................... 12 3.3 Justice System Based Intervention........................................................................................ 13 3.4 Comprehensive Approaches.................................................................................................. 13 3.5 Holistic Approaches ............................................................................................................. 14 4.0 Methodological Challenges to Implementing Meta-Analysis .................................................. 14 4.1 Comparability of Study Outcomes ........................................................................................ 15 4.2 Comparability of Study Outcomes Across the Set of 38 Included Evaluations ................... 17 4.3 Calculation of Effect Sizes .................................................................................................... 18 5.0 Narrative Synthesis of Study Findings ..................................................................................... 19 5.1 Prevention Strategies ........................................................................................................... 19 5.2 Gang Activity Regulation Strategies .................................................................................... 20 5.3 Justice System Based Interventions ...................................................................................... 21 5.4 Comprehensive Approaches.................................................................................................. 22 5.5 Holistic Approaches ............................................................................................................. 22 6.0 Discussion ................................................................................................................................. 22 6.1 Prevention Strategies: Why are They Not Effective? ........................................................... 24 6.2 Gang Activity Regulation Programs ..................................................................................... 26 6.3 Justice System Based Programs ............................................................................................ 30 6.4 Comprehensive and Holistic Programs ................................................................................. 30 7.0 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 36 7.1 Summary of Recommendations ............................................................................................ 37 References ....................................................................................................................................... 39 Appendix A: Databases and