In 2023 Sweden experienced a large increase in organized crime which resulted in a series of explosions and gun-violence mainly between two criminal organizations. This received major attention from both the political arena and news outlets. The purpose of this study is to explore how Swedish news media construct their articles about the criminal organizations and perpetrators during the wave of ‘gang-violence’ during 2023. Using a qualitative critical discourse analysis the two largest evening newspapers in Sweden were analyzed. The results indicate that the criminal gangs and their leaders are constructed as well organized and systematic in their activities while the average members are constructed as disorganized, if described at all. The leaders are constructed in ways similar to celebrities or leaders of their own military. The youth members are constructed as victims of the gangs at the same frequency as they are average members. Finally, the potential effects this discourse may lead to is also discussed.

The aim of this study was to understand how gang members desist from their gangs and which role authorities have in the process. More specifically the aim was to discover turning points and find out how the former gang members themselves look upon the contact with authorities, for example social services. This study was based on five interviews and two autobiographies with former gang members. The interviews took place in a organisation for former offenders in Sweden and the choice of autobiographies was based on the purpose of this study. As the results showed, the most common turning points was social bonds, fear of prison, disappointment and traumatic events or experiences. Authorities did not have any impact on the decision of leaving the gang. Former gang members also indicated that they had negative experiences with the authorities. Based on the results of this study suggestions for improvement have emerged. Authorities need to have experienced employees, knowledge about gang members, have a flexible work method and a positive approach.

Tidigare forskning har visat att media har stor påverkan på hur samhället ser på kriminalitet och gäng. Gängkriminalitet är ett aktuellt och stort ämne i svensk media i dagsläget på grund av våldet och skjutningarna som gängkriminaliteten associeras med idag, som får storuppmärksamhet i media. Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka hur kriminella gäng och individer med koppling till kriminella gäng konstrueras och positioneras i den nyhetsmediala samhällsdebatten ur ett intersektionellt perspektiv samt utifrån den kritiska diskursanalysen. Detta genomförs genom att kritiskt granska innehållet i artiklar publicerade i Aftonbladet och Svenska Dagbladet. Resultatet visar bland annat på att svensk media konstruerar gäng som hänsynslösa och våldsamma. Miljön som gängen rör sig inom beskrivs som en gangstermiljö som är fylld med narkotika och vapen. Män är det mest framträdande könet när media skriver om gängmedlemmar, och segregation, klasskillnader och svag integration är faktorer som anses påverka till gängmedlemskap. Uppsatsen visar på hur svensk nyhetsmedia skildrar och framställer gängkriminella, och på hur detta bidrar till att konstruera och reproducera identiteter för gängkriminella. Studien bidrar med att synliggöra diskurserna om gängkriminella samt hur detta skapas och stärks av svensk nyhetsmedia. / Gang crime is a current and major topic in the Swedish media at the moment due to the violence and shootings that gang crime is associated with today, and it receives a lot of attention in the media. The purpose of this study is to examine how criminal gangs and gang members are constructed and positioned in the news media from an intersectional perspective and based on the critical discourse analysis. This is done by critically reviewing the content of articles published in Aftonbladet and Svenska Dagbladet during the period January 2019 to April 2023. The results show, among other things, that the Swedish media constructs gangs as ruthless and violent. The environment the gangs operate in is described as a gangster environment filled with drugs and weapons. Men are the most prominent gender when the media writes about gang members. Segregation, class differences and weak integration are factors considered to influence gang membership. The essay shows how the Swedish news media portrays gangs and gang members, and how this contributes to construct and reproducing identities for gang criminals. / <p>2023-01-01</p>

Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur gängmedlemmar lyckats lämna sitt gäng. Denna kvalitativa studie undersöker fyra gängmedlemmars personliga resa ut ur sina respektive gäng, och hur de upplevde samhällsinsatser och ibland bristen på dem. Studien genomfördes med hjälp av semistrukturerade intervjuer som analyserades med en tematisk analys. Under litteratursökningens gång upptäcktes en märkbar kunskapslucka i tillgänglig forskning om hur människor lämnar kriminella gäng. Det finns dock studier gjorda om vägen in i ett gäng. Resultatet av intervjuerna har tolkats utifrån push- och pull-teorin och teorin om sociala band. Resultaten tyder på att majoriteten av de tillfrågade lämnade sina gäng på grund av rädsla för att bli skjutna, antingen för sig själv eller familjemedlemmar. En annan viktig anledning till att de tillfrågade lämnade sina gäng var för att de hade yttre motiv och möjligheter, såsom: en ny relation, att skaffa barn eller att flytta till en annan stad. Personer som har lämnat gängkriminalitet upplevde ofta samhällsinsatserna som otillräckliga och därmed bristande. Enligt deras upplevelse litade socialarbetaren inte helt på eller lyssnade på dem. Andra typer av insatser som respondenterna hade önskat var: familjebehandling i hemmet, mentorskap eller olika återinträdesinsatser för att bli bättre integrerade i samhället efter att ha lämnat ett gäng. Studien visade att det finns ett behov av ytterligare forskning gällande utfallet av olika insatser. Det behövs också ytterligare forskning kring socialarbetarens roll, vad de kan göra och vad de bör göra, för att underlätta vägen ut ur ett gäng. / The purpose of the study is to investigate how gang members succeeded in quitting their gang. This qualitative study examines the personal journey of four gang-members out of their respective gangs, and how they experienced the societal efforts and sometimes the lack of them. The study was carried out with the help of semi-structured interviews which were analyzed with a thematic analysis. Surprisingly, there was a noticeable gap in available research in how people leave criminal gangs. There are however studies done on the way into a gang. The result of the interviews have been interpreted based on the push- and pull-theory and the theory of social bonds. The results indicate that the majority of respondents left their gangs due to fear of getting shot, either themselves or family members. Another major reason why the respondents left their gangs is because they had other external motivations and opportunities, such as: a new relationship, having a child, or simply relocating to another city. However, the former gang members often experienced that societal interventions were lacking. In their experience the social worker didn't fully trust or listen to them. Examples of interventions that could have benefitted, according to the respondents, are: family treatment at home, mentorship, or re-entry interventions to get better integrated into society after leaving a gang. The study showed that there's a need for further research regarding the potential outcome of each type of intervention. There is also a need for further research regarding the role of social workers, what they can do, and what they should do, in order to facilitate the way out of a gang.