Agencies do recognize the differences between gangs and unsupervised and troublesome youth groups.
As a result, they may be considered troublesome but not threatening to society. These adolescent groups lack size, formal organization, and permanence, and their delinquency typically is not as frequent, serious, or violent as that of youth gangs. Some researchers have suggested that law enforcement agencies typically do not make a distinction between gangs and unsupervised and troublesome youth groups. To test this notion, survey recipients were asked about these respective groups in their jurisdictions.