No two gangs are alike: The digital divide in street gangs’ differential adaptations to social media

Highlights：

• An empirical study on how social media have affected gangs, from the perspective of five distinct types of participants.

• Digital technology divided gangs into ‘traditionalists’ who consciously abstain and ‘digitalists’ who fully engage.

• Gang evolution matters: While established gangs choose aA a ‘traditionalist’ approach, newer gangs become ‘digitalists’.

• Generation gap matters: Established older members gain less from social media attention than younger counterparts.

• Younger members are more at home in the digital world than older gang members.