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According to several major American sociological theories, teenage gangs play some part in stimulating members to be delinquent. Although the various theories are distinct from each other, the picture drawn of the gang is quite consistent. Members recurrently congregate outside their homes and primarily with each other; they see themselves as having rights to a" territory" in proximity to their homes and their meeting-place; they are structured partly according to age, have a well-defined leadership, and they engage in a wide range of activities together. Miller's (1975, p. 9) national survey of law enforcement and social work personnel confirms that this description is widely accepted by practitioners. The theories differ somewhat regarding the specific relationship of gang membership to delinquent behaviour. Thrasher wrote about the Chicago slums of the 1920s, and his work marks the beginning of sociologically …