In Youth Gangs: History, Recruitment, and Community Response, author Laura Pinto Hansen invites readers to explore the history of youth gangs, the diverse types of gangs, how they form, and what makes gangs attractive to children, adolescents, and young adults. The book highlights the fact that youth gangs cannot be lumped into the same category as traditional organized crime due to nuances related to the age of their members, the influence of the juvenile justice system, and their short-lived nature as neighbourhood demographics shift or small groups are absorbed into more established gangs.

Readers learn classical and contemporary theories to help explain youth gang involvement before exploring key topics, including youth gang recruitment and initiation, the use of social networks by gangs and their members, and violence in youth gangs. Dedicated chapters examine female membership in youth gangs, juveniles' involvement in adult gangs and organized crime, and the effect of gangs on schools. The book discusses how youth gang members interact with the juvenile and adult justice systems, global issues related to youth gangs, and prevention programs and responses.

Interdisciplinary in nature, Youth Gangs offers readers a wide range of viewpoints from the fields of sociology, psychology, criminology, criminal justice, and public health to introduce students to a more holistic approach to tackling the issue of lost youth in the United States and abroad.