In many situations, the modern delinquent gang appears to act as a functional equivalent of the ancient companionage in which shared responsibility dominates. Obligations and shared responsibilities are a part of the requirements of group membership. In many groups of delinquents, a common feature is diversity; differences are necessary to the quality of the group and perhaps even to its survival. Differences of viewpoints make internal conflict likely, and it is precisely these kinds of internal conflicts which bring about subtle and small incremental shifts in gang behavior, and involve a relationship of superordination-subordination between contending groups. Groups contain contradictory forces and the conflict of these opposites fuels their reality in constant change. References