Service-learning under COVID-19: A scoping review of the challenges and opportunities for practicing service-learning in the 'New Normal'.

Service-learning collaborations have the potential to effectively respond to community needs, students' needs, and institutional priorities. However, natural and man-made crises oftentimes throw these arrangements into disarray. The coronavirus (COVID-19) is one such significant crisis that continues to challenge service-learning collaborations worldwide. Based on a systematic scoping review of scholarship on service-learning programs conducted during COVID-19, this study aimed to explore thematic similarities and differences between them, elucidating key observations and insights for future action. Overall, findings from 13 peer-reviewed articles indicated that, although not immune to the wide-ranging adverse effects of COVID-19, service-learning has proven itself to be an effective responsive pedagogy in times of crisis.

A latent profile analysis of child maltreatment among at-risk youth gang members: Associations with violent delinquency, non-violent delinquency, and gang organizational structures.

BACKGROUND: The relationship between child maltreatment and later delinquency is an enduring concern worldwide. However, the maltreatment-delinquency relationship is relatively underexplored in youth gang populations. Consequently, to date, studies have not examined typologies of maltreatment and their associations with violent delinquency, non-violent delinquency, and gang organizational structures. OBJECTIVE: First, to identify the characteristics of subgroups of youth gang members who varied in abuse type and severity within type. Second, to determine in what ways the profiles differed in terms of gang organizational structures, violent delinquency, and non-violent delinquency. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTINGS: A sample of 161 youth gang members (mean age: 16.8; range: 12-24) were recruited and surveyed by outreach social workers in Hong Kong. METHODS: Latent profile analysis was first used to examine heterogeneity in victimization experiences (physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, and neglect). Thereafter, non-parametric tests and post-hoc analyses were conducted to examine associations between the yielded typologies of maltreatment and gang organizational structures, violent delinquency, and non-violent delinquency. RESULTS: Poly-victimization was prevalent in the sample, with 148 respondents (91.9 %) reporting at least two types of past abuses. Three profiles of maltreatment emerged, varying in abuse types and severity within types: 'Minimally maltreated', 'Moderately maltreated, except sexual abuse', and 'Severely maltreated'. In comparison to the 'Minimal' maltreatment profile, the 'Moderate' and 'Severe' profiles were associated with greater delinquent behaviors and being in gangs that encouraged congregate illegal behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: There was a relationship between typologies of maltreatment and gang organizational structures, violent delinquency, and non-violent delinquency in the sample of youth gang members. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.

Associations among Bullying Victimization, Family Dysfunction, Negative Affect, and Bullying Perpetration in Macanese Adolescents.

Bullying has become one of the most significant problem behaviors that school-aged adolescents face. The current study examines the strain-delinquency relationship by employing General Strain Theory as a guiding framework. "Strain" was operationalized as bullying victimization and family dysfunction, "delinquency" was operationalized as bullying perpetration, and "negative affect" was operationalized as anxiety and depression. Analyses were carried out based on a group of 2,139 Macanese schoolchildren. Using a structural equation modeling technique, the results revealed that exposure to family dysfunction and bullying victimization was associated with adolescents' negative affect, such as anxiety and depression. Contrary to our expectations, the indirect effect of victimization on bullying through negative affect was negative, though the mediation effect was relatively small and only significant in boys. In addition, gender analyses of invariance showed that male adolescents who experienced more family conflict and parental control were less likely to engage in bullying. This study could lead to further anti-bullying interventions and practical efforts designed to improve positive parenting and adolescents' interpersonal skills.

Mediating the Maltreatment-Delinquency Relationship: The Role of Triad Gang Membership.

The primary aim of this article is to examine the role of triad affiliation in mediating the relationship between child maltreatment (neglect, punishment, emotional abuse, and sexual abuse) and delinquency among active young gang members in Hong Kong. A sample of 177 gang members aged 12 to 24 was recruited to complete a questionnaire with the assistance of a youth outreach social work team. Neglect was identified as the most common form of maltreatment, followed by emotional abuse, punishment, and sexual abuse. Mediation analyses confirmed that triad affiliation acts as a mediating variable in the child maltreatment-delinquency relationship, except in cases of sexual abuse. Only the relationship between punishment and delinquency was found to be fully mediated by triad affiliation; partial mediation effects were found for neglect and emotional abuse. Recommendations for child protection and youth workers are provided.

Delinquency Among Members of Hong Kong Youth Street Gangs: The Role of the Organizational Structures of Gangs and Triad Affiliations.

This study explores the importance of organizational structures and formal affiliations with the Hong Kong triads to delinquency among youth street gang members in Hong Kong. More specifically, this study examines the relative importance of the number of organizational structures and triad affiliation to patterns of delinquency in a sample of active members of youth street gangs ( N = 201). With the aid of outreach social workers, a convenience sampling method was used to recruit a gender-balanced sample of at-risk youths. Logistic regression analysis of the survey data that was gathered indicated that formal affiliation to Hong Kong triads and the presence of organizational structures significantly increased the odds of delinquency (independently of each other). Suggestions for future research on gang membership and delinquency, with particular reference to the Asian context, are provided.