Household Gun Research Articles

Toward a Standard Measure of Gun Ownership: A Methodological and Theoretical Quandary in Firearm Research

One limitation of the literature on gun ownership is a lack of consensus regarding how to operationalize the dependent variable. Consequently, gun measures vary widely across studies, and findings about the prevalence and predictors of gun ownership are inconsistent. In the current study, we endeavor to develop an empirically supported, standard measure of gun ownership. First, utilizing data from a national sample of the U.S. population, we analyze the relative validity of household versus personal measures of gun ownership and critically appraise the value of accounting for gun quantity and the purpose of ownership. Second, per our findings, we recommend a short set of survey questions as the standard measure of gun ownership. These questions (1) differentiate non-owners, personal gun owners, and household gun owners; (2) account for the number of firearms owned; and (3) categorize owners by motivation (protective vs. non-protective).

The era of progress on gun mortality: State gun regulations and gun deaths from 1991-2016.

The recent rise of gun violence may lead to the perception that the problem of gun mortality in the United States is intractable. This article provides evidence to counter this perception by bringing attention to the period spanning from 1991 to 2016, when most U.S. states implemented more restrictive gun laws. Over this period, the U.S. experienced a decline in household gun ownership and gun-related deaths fell sharply. The main analysis examines the conditional association between change in gun regulations at the state level and change in gun mortality from 1991 to 2016. We include a range of robustness checks and two instrumental variables analyses to allow for stronger causal inferences. We find strong, consistent evidence supporting the hypothesis that restrictive state gun policies reduce overall gun deaths, homicides committed with a gun, and suicides committed with a gun. Each additional restrictive gun regulation a given state passed from 1991-2016 was associated with -0.21 (95% confidence interval = -0.33, -0.08) gun deaths per 100,000 residents. Further, we find that specific policies, such as background checks and waiting periods for gun purchase, were associated with lower overall gun death rates, gun homicide rates, and gun suicide rates. State regulations passed from 1991 to 2016 were associated with substantial reductions in gun mortality. We estimate that restrictive state gun policies passed in 40 states from 1991 to 2016 averted 4,297 gun deaths in 2016 alone, or roughly 11% of the total gun deaths that year.

Extending the Firearm Suicide Proxy for Household Gun Ownership

Levels of gun ownership and lethal violence in the U.S. far surpass those in any other developed country, and yet there is little known about the origins of these trends due to a lack of historical data on the prevalence of gun ownership. To fill this gap, this study extends an existing proxy for household gun ownership rates-the rate of firearm suicide divided by suicide (FSS)-from 1949 to 2020, including new coverage for the 1949 to 1972 period. A novel approach was developed to validate the FSS proxy for household gun ownership rates during a period that lacks firearm ownership measures conventionally used to validate firearm proxies. Historical data were compiled that should be strongly associated with gun ownership trends to test the strength and consistency of the relationship with FSS between 1949 to 2020. The FSS proxy increased by 45 percent between 1949 and 1990, the latter representing the U.S.'s peak FSS year. Over half of that increase occurred between 1949 and 1972, the period that previously lacked systematic data on gun prevalence rates. FSS can be used as a proxy for the prevalence of guns among U.S. households at the state level between 1949 to 1972. Unlike most gun prevalence measures that are representative at the national or regional level, this proxy represents household gun ownership trends at the state level and is not reliant on self-reported data that are prone to social desirability bias. This extended proxy represents the longest-ranging dataset of state-level gun ownership rates to date.

Black Household gun ownership and black suicide rates across U.S. States

IntroductionEcologic studies have examined the relationship across states between levels of household gun ownership and suicide rates using household gun ownership data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BFRSS) or proxies. However, no study has examined how race-specific survey-based or proxy measures of gun ownership are related to race-specific suicide rates. MethodsWe use cross-sectional state-level race-specific data to examine how well various proxies correlate with race-specific BRFSS gun ownership rates. We examine whether BRFSS measures of household gun ownership are correlated with firearm suicide, non-firearm suicide, and total suicide rates, for Black and for White adults, and repeat these assessments with select proxies. The core BRFSS only included gun questions in 2001, 2002, and 2004, but not since; mortality data are collapsed 2001-2010. ResultsAmong a set of proxies, the race-specific fraction of suicides that are firearm suicides (FS/S) is the measure most highly correlated with BRFSS household gun ownership. Across states, White adult BFRSS household gun ownership levels are highly correlated with White adult firearm suicide rates (correlation coefficient .82) and moderately correlated with White overall suicide rates (.63). However, for Black adults, we find that while the state-level Black gun ownership levels are moderately correlated with Black firearm suicide rates (.67)—more strongly for older (.70) than for younger (.47) Black adults—Black BRFSS gun ownership levels are only weakly correlated with Black overall suicide rates (.17) owing to a moderate inverse correlation with Black non-firearm suicide rates (-.45). For Black adults, the relationship between FS/S and suicide is similar to the relation between BRFSS and suicide. ConclusionFor White adults, states with higher levels of measured household gun ownership have higher overall suicide rates. This relationship does not hold for Black adults, largely due to a more attenuated correlation between these measures of firearm availability and firearm suicide rates coupled with a more substantial countervailing (inverse) relationship between these measures and non-firearm suicide rates. Future efforts using individual level data might help determine why this puzzling difference exists, especially for young Black adults.

Effectiveness of Screening for Household Gun Ownership in an Urban Primary Care Clinic.

Gun-related suicide and homicide are leading causes of death among children. Little is known about the effectiveness of screening for gun ownership in primary care. We examined positive gun ownership screens over a 2.5-year period in a pediatric primary care clinic. The main outcome was a positive screen for gun ownership. The main predictors included insurance type, neighborhood median income, number of clinic visits, and other social needs. Of 19 163 patients, 474 (2.5%) screened positive for gun ownership. Patients with private insurance and from higher income neighborhoods had 2 to 3 times higher odds of a positive screen. Patients with more visits and with food insecurity had approximately 2 to 4 times the odds of a positive screen for household gun ownership. In conclusion, the rate of positive gun ownership screens was very low and far below known gun ownership rates. Improved screening methods could better identify opportunities for gun safety advocacy.

Extending the Firearm Suicide Proxy for Household Gun Ownership

Extending the Firearm Suicide Proxy for Household Gun Ownership

Patterns of household gun ownership and firearm suicide among black men compared to white men

Little is known about the patterns of household gun ownership among Black Americans, so little is known about the relationship between the patterns of Black household gun ownership and the patterns of Black firearm suicide. We analyze data from the 2001–2004 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, the first and last years for which a gun question was part of the core questions. We compare household gun ownership patterns for Black men compared to White men across geographic (region, urbanicity), demographic (age, education, married, children at home), and health-related characteristics (binge drinking, smoking), and find that the patterns are quite similar for all eight variables. However, when we compare these race-specific patterns to the race-specific firearm suicide patterns for 2001–2004, while the White firearm suicide patterns follow their gun ownership patterns, the Black patterns do not. While gun ownership increases with age, adult male Black firearm suicide rates are highest in the younger age group—an age group that also has a high proportion of suicides that are firearm suicides. Differences in unadjusted demographic patterns in firearm suicide between Black men and White men cannot be explained by differences in the self-reported patterns of household gun ownership.

Publisher’s note

Little is known about the patterns of household gun ownership among Black Americans, so little is known about the relationship between the patterns of Black household gun ownership and the patterns of Black firearm suicide. We analyze data from the 2001-2004 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, the first and last years for which a gun question was part of the core questions. We compare household gun ownership patterns for Black men compared to White men across geographic (region, urbanicity), demographic (age, education, married, children at home), and health-related characteristics (binge drinking, smoking), and find that the patterns are quite similar for all eight variables. However, when we compare these race-specific patterns to the race-specific firearm suicide patterns for 2001-2004, while the White firearm suicide patterns follow their gun ownership patterns, the Black patterns do not. While gun ownership increases with age, adult male Black firearm suicide rates are highest in the younger age group-an age group that also has a high proportion of suicides that are firearm suicides. Differences in unadjusted demographic patterns in firearm suicide between Black men and White men cannot be explained by differences in the self-reported patterns of household gun ownership.

Type of household firearm ownership and firearm suicide among adolescents, 1976–2018

After declining steadily for almost two decades, the rate of firearm suicide among adolescents (aged 15–19 years) has increased nearly every year since 2007. At the same time, overall levels of household firearm ownership have been declining. In this paper, we examined whether and how types of firearms in the homes of adolescents have changed over time, and the extent to which such changes are associated with trends in firearm suicides among adolescents. Our analyses focused on understanding these trends among Black and White male and female adolescents to better understand longstanding race-gender differences in firearm ownership and firearm suicide. With combined data from the General Social Survey (GSS) and the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), the findings show that handgun ownership in Black and White households increased over the last four decades, while overall levels of firearm ownership declined. Increases in handgun ownership were predictive of increased firearm suicide rates among White adolescents, especially among males. We found no significant relationship between firearm suicide among Black adolescents and firearm ownership among Black households, regardless of gun type, which is potentially unsurprising given that firearm ownership is substantially lower in Black households compared to White households. Possibly reflecting race and gender differences in household gun ownership, our findings also show that rates of firearm suicide were lower for Black and female adolescents and highest for White male adolescents. Taken together, these findings provide new evidence on the relationship between trends in firearm ownership and adolescent firearm suicide and address important questions about the influence of race and gender for understanding firearm suicide among adolescents.

Teen firearm access during COVID: a repeated cross-sectional analysis of Pennsylvania families

PurposeThis study aims to investigate patterns in adolescent gun access and household gun storage in 2021 and 2022.Design/methodology/approachData were collected from two cross-sectional surveys of Pennsylvania parents with a teenage child at home.FindingsThe results indicated that about 20% of gun owners in each survey stored their guns loaded; a similar percentage stored their guns unlocked. Very few gun owners reported that their children could access their guns without adult supervision. This study found no change in gun storage practices between 2021 and 2022, but higher rates of gun ownership in 2022. The factors associated with gun storage behaviors did change between the two time points. COVID-related uncertainties and transitions in the household were linked to gun ownership and less safe storage practices in 2021, but not in 2022.Originality/valueThis study identified factors associated with teen gun access at distinct points during the pandemic. This study found little evidence of any association between child mental health and household firearm storage.

Examining racism and firearm-related risks among Asian Americans in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic

Firearm-related injury is a major public health concern in the U.S. Experience of racism and discrimination can increase the risk of minority group members engaging in or being victims of firearm-related violence. Given the increased racism endured by Asian Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to understand firearm-related behaviors in this population. The purpose of this study was to examine how Asian Americans’ racism and discrimination experiences were related to firearm-related behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic. Cross-sectional data were collected between December 2020 and January 2021 from a national sample of 916 Asian Americans. Measures included demographics, firearm-related risks, and three measures of racism/discrimination experiences since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Among individuals who purchased a gun since the start of the pandemic, 54.6% were first-time gun owners. Among household gun owners, 42.8% stored loaded guns and 47.1% stored guns unlocked. More than 38% of individual gun owners have carried a gun more frequently since the pandemic. After controlling for family firearm ownership and demographics, regression analyses showed that Asian Americans who experienced racial discrimination were more likely to purchase a gun and ammunition and intend to purchase more ammunition during the COVID-19 pandemic. AAs who perceived more cultural racism were more likely to purchase a gun. Individuals who reported higher anticipatory racism-related stress reported greater intent to purchase guns. Our findings suggest an urgent need to investigate further the compounded effects of racism, the COVID-19 pandemic, and firearm-related behaviors in this population.

Who owned the gun in firearm suicides of men, women, and youth in five US states?

One way to reduce firearm suicide is to keep household guns away from a person at risk for suicide. To learn who owned (and presumably controlled access to) the guns used in suicide and which broad gun type they were, we examined National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) data from 2015 to 2017 for five US states that supplied information on gun owner in over 80% of firearm suicides (AK, IA, NH, UT, WI). For adult males, 88% used their own gun; for women, 52% used their own gun and 32% used their partner's gun; for youth ages 18–20, 42% used their own gun, 43% used a family member's, and 8% used a friend's; for children, 19% used their own gun (usually a long gun) and 79% used a family member's gun. Almost 3/4 of firearm suicides involved a handgun, ranging from 62% for youth to 92% for women. In times of suicide risk, interventions for a youth should address not only the parents' guns, but those of other family members and the youth's own rifle or shotgun. For a woman, interventions need to address her own and her partner's guns. For a man, locking guns alone will confer little protection if he controls the keys or combination. Storing firearms—or a critical component—away from home or having someone else control the locks may be safer. Five NVDRS states provided useful data on who owned the gun used in firearm suicides. More NVDRS states should follow suit.

Youth gun carrying and household firearm ownership in 22 US states.

Youth gun carrying is associated with a range of adverse outcomes, including increased risks for homicide, suicide, school disciplinary problems, and criminal legal involvement. In this study we examined the association between state-level household firearm ownership rates and the odds of past-year gun carrying among high-school-aged youth. Using survey-weighted multivariable logistic regression models, results showed that each 1% point increase in state-level gun ownership was associated with a 2.7% (95% confidence interval [CI] = [1.1%, 4.2%], p = 0.001) increased odds of youth gun carrying, controlling for histories of school-based victimization, physical fighting, and substance use. Among a subset of weapon-carrying youth, state-level firearm availability was a significant factor in determining whether the weapon carried was a gun or a less lethal (i.e., nonfirearm) weapon (odds ratio = 1.021, 95% CI = [1.005, 1.038], p = 0.01). These findings show that firearm availability confers additional risk for youth gun carrying beyond the psychosocial risks emphasized in prior research and efforts to restrict youth access to firearms might be particularly important, especially in communities with high levels of household gun ownership.

Associations Between Gun Storage Practices and Parenting Practices: A Pennsylvania Study

This study examines how parenting practices might relate to home gun storage practices, even after accounting for sociodemographic correlates found in past research. First, parenting practices of personal gun owners, household gun owners, and nonowners are compared. Second, the study identifies associations among parenting practices, household gun storage, and juvenile access to household firearms. Data were obtained in October 2019 through an online survey of 525 Pennsylvania parents of youth ages 12–17. Respondents were selected to mirror Pennsylvania demographics. Results indicated no differences in parenting practices based on household gun ownership. Yet, personal gun ownership was associated with more inconsistency in discipline and poor monitoring and supervision. Poor supervision and monitoring were not associated with firearm storage practices. Parents who reported poorer supervision and monitoring were more likely to allow their child gun access. There was no link between parental involvement and household firearm practices. Parents who used inconsistent discipline also had inconsistent firearm storage practices. Positive discipline and communication were associated with storing guns locked.

From Regression Analysis to Deep Learning: Development of Improved Proxy Measures of State-Level Household Gun Ownership

SummaryIn the absence of direct measurements of state-level household gun ownership (GO), the quality and accuracy of proxy measures for this variable are essential for firearm-related research and policy development. In this work, we develop two highly accurate proxy measures of GO using traditional regression analysis and deep learning, the former accounting for non-linearities in the covariates (portion of suicides committed with a firearm [FS/S] and hunting license rates) and their statistical interactions. We subject the proxies to extensive model diagnostics and validation. Both our regression-based and deep-learning proxy measures provide highly accurate models of GO with training R2 of 96% and 98%, respectively, along with other desirable qualities—stark improvements over the prevalent FS/S proxy (R2 = 0.68). Model diagnostics reveal this widely used FS/S proxy is highly biased and inadequate; we recommend that it no longer be used to represent state-level household gun ownership in firearm-related studies.

Comparing the Impact of Household Gun Ownership and Concealed Carry Legislation on the Frequency of Mass Shootings and Firearms Homicide

Although mass shootings have fueled calls for large-scale changes in gun ownership and concealed carry legislation over the past thirty years, few studies have evaluated whether permissive gun policies actually deter mass shootings, and none have determined if their effects are the same on firearms homicide in general. This study examines the impact of household gun ownership and concealed carry legislation on annual counts of mass shootings and firearms homicides in the United States from 1991 to 2016. Negative binomial regressions with fixed effects and generalized estimating equations (GEE) indicate that mass shootings disproportionately occur in states with higher levels of gun ownership, while firearms homicide rates are higher in permissive concealed carry states. As the two crimes do not respond to changes in gun ownership and concealed carry legislation in the same way, lawmakers must contextualize mass shootings as a small, unique part of overall gun violence when considering policy interventions.

Sexual Orientation Differences in Gun Ownership and Beliefs About Gun Safety Policy, General Social Survey 2010-2016.

The aim of this study was to investigate sexual orientation differences in gun ownership and gun safety beliefs among U.S. adults. We used information from the General Social Survey (2010-2016) to assess presence of guns in the household, personal gun ownership, and endorsement of a gun safety law among sexual minority (n = 195) versus heterosexual (n = 4359) respondents. Methods employed multivariate logistic regression analyses adjusted for confounding including gender, age, race/ethnicity, education level, size of household, urbanicity, military veteran status, and political views. Gay/bisexual men were more likely to endorse a gun safety law (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 3.24, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.79-5.88) and less likely to report guns in the household (aOR = 0.34, 95% CI = 0.18-0.65) than heterosexual men. In contrast, lesbian/bisexual and heterosexual women similarly endorsed a gun safety law and reported household guns. However, among women reporting a household gun, lesbian/bisexual women were more likely to be the personal gun owner (aOR = 3.97, 95% CI = 1.43-11.03). Attitudes toward a gun safety law and gun ownership differ by sexual orientation, but patterns vary by gender. We recommend that clinicians inquire about gun ownership and gun storage practices with both heterosexual and sexual minority patients.

Female gun owners: Differences by household and personal gun ownership

ABSTRACTThis study examines 1) how female personal gun owners, female household gun owners, and female non-owners differ in demographic characteristics, handgun exposure and gun-related attitudes; and 2) how these differences vary from those for males. Data were obtained from a nationwide web survey, involving 390 female respondents and 134 male respondents, in 2016. Results indicated that female personal gun owners hold more pro-gun attitudes than female household gun owners and non-owners. Female non-owners had less exposure to guns than female household gun owners while female household owners had less exposure to guns than female personal owners. Variations by type of gun exposure, namely exposure to known persons with guns versus strangers with guns, were observed. Prior victimization was influential for female gun attitudes, but not male gun attitudes. Exposure to a known-person with a handgun was related to female gun attitudes, but not male gun attitudes.

Gun Violence and Mental Illness: It’s Time to Change the Status Quo

Gun Violence and Mental Illness: It’s Time to Change the Status Quo

Association of Increased Safe Household Firearm Storage With Firearm Suicide and Unintentional Death Among US Youths

Firearm injury is the second leading cause of death in the United States for children and young adults. The risk of unintentional and self-inflicted firearm injury is lower when all household firearms are stored locked. To estimate the reduction in youth firearm suicide and unintentional firearm mortality that would result if more adults in households with youth stored household guns locked. A modeling study using Monte Carlo simulation of youth firearm suicide and unintentional firearm mortality in 2015. A simulated US national sample of firearm-owning households where youth reside was derived using nationally representative rates of firearm ownership and storage and population data from the US Census to test a hypothetical intervention, safe storage of firearms in the home, on youth accidental death and suicide. Data analyses were performed from August 3, 2017, to January 9, 2018. Observed and counterfactual household-level safe firearm storage (ie, storing all firearms locked), the latter estimated by varying the probability that a hypothetical intervention increased safe firearm storage beyond that observed in 2015. Observed and counterfactual counts of firearm suicide and unintentional firearm mortality among youth aged 0 to 19 years, the latter estimated by incorporating an empirically based estimate of the mortality benefit expected from additional safe storage (beyond that observed in 2015). A hypothetical intervention among firearm owners residing with children with a 20% probability of motivating these owners to lock all household firearms was significantly associated with a projected reduction in youth firearm mortality (median incidence rate ratio = 0.90; interquartile range, 0.87-0.93). In the overall model, 6% to 32% of deaths were estimated to be preventable depending on the probability of motivating safer storage. Results of this modeling study suggest that a relatively modest uptake of a straightforward safe storage recommendation-lock all household firearms-could result in meaningful reductions in firearm suicide and unintentional firearm fatalities among youth. Approaches that will motivate additional parents to store firearms safely are needed.