What impulses are motivating teens to join violent flash mobs? Although some believe teens are bored or seeking to gain a reputation for toughness, others wonder if too much police presence in response to reports of flash mobs worsens things. Molefi Kete Asante, a professor of African-American studies at Temple, said that "rather than calling it a flash mob, I think that what occurred was young people just got out of hand in reaction to the presence of police."