The styles, mannerisms, and poses of gangbanging would not have been adopted so enthusiastically by other segments of society if they did not speak powerfully to something within them.

If the most fundamental drive in gangbanging is to defy feelings of insignificance, would it not make sense to ascribe the same sorts of needs to those who so enthusiastically appropriate elements of gangbanger identity?

The fact is, even  pampered offspring of the comfortable classes can feel pretty insignificant these days. As yet uninducted into the workforce, they are almost completely devoid of opportunities to feel like participants or producers in the larger order of things, and thus have no way to conceive of themselves as anything other than spectator-consumers--tiny and lost among the covetous, bored, and petulant hordes.

Perhaps the most telling example of this phenomenon is the emergence of Asian gangs in the Los Angeles suburb of San Marino.  These gangs have earned notoriety for their viciousness--and yet the town they're based in has a higher per capita income than Beverly Hills.