Access to a Loaded Gun Without Adult Permission and School-Based Bullying

Abstract

PurposeGun access and bullying are risk factors for sustaining or perpetrating violence among adolescents. Our knowledge of gun access among bullied students is limited. MethodsWe used data on students, aged 12–18 years, from the 2011 and 2013 School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey to assess the association between self-reported bullying victimization (traditional and cyber) and access to a loaded gun without adult permission. Prevalence ratios (PRs) and confidence intervals (CIs) were obtained from multivariable Poisson regression using the Taylor series after controlling for student age, sex, family income, public/private school, and race. ResultsOf 10,704 participants, 4.2% (95% CI: 3.8%–4.6%) reported gun access. Compared with nonbullied students, those who reported traditional bullying (PR = 2.2; 95% CI: 1.7–2.4), cyberbullying (PR = 2.8; 95% CI: 1.6–4.9), and both (PR = 5.9; 95% CI: 4.6–7.7) were more likely to also report gun access. ConclusionsAdolescents who experience bullying, particularly those who report both traditional bullying and cyberbullying, are more likely to report access to a loaded gun without adult permission. These findings highlight the importance of developing interventions focused on these modifiable risk factors for preventing self-directed or interpersonal violence among youth.