Meet the teen tribes out for fun

The expression 'teen gang' has recently become shorthand for everything that's out of control in contemporary Britain.

Yet, contrary to all the popular evidence, the truth is that the vast majority of teen gangs are not the epitome of marauding lawlessness.

Teen Species, a new BBC documentary to be aired next month, investigates why teenagers travel in packs. And it isn't about terrorising the locals. According to Dr Nick Baylis, affiliate lecturer in positive psychology at Cambridge University, joining a gang satisfies teenagers' need to belong, and is a logical bridge from the security of childhood to the solo adult world.

'In our early teens, we invariably lack self-confidence and gangs provide an emotionally secure environment in which the unwritten rules are well understood,' he says. 'Moreover, close relationships and a sense of belonging are crucial sources of happiness, and gangs foster these.' The association between teenagers and gangs is also a natural one. 'By our late teens,' explains Baylis, 'our self-confidence is probably sufficient that we're willing to trade our old gang for the social mobility of seeking out the most attractive individuals wherever we can find them.'

ES scoured the streets of London in search of the defining teen tribes of 2002. Introducing the Moshers and the Ped Heads, the Ragga Girls and the Portobello Princesses. The Eco Kids, the Highgate Honeys and the Balham Boys (and Girls). Hanging out on a street corner, or even in your own home.

Teen Species is on BBC1 in June

The Portobello Princesses
The Ragga Girls
The Edo Kids
The Nu-metal Moshers
The Balham Boys - and Girls
The Ped Heads
The Highgate Honeys