• Am J Prev Med · Nov 2024

    Associations Between Perceived Threats and Firearm Behaviors Among U.S. Adults.

    • Rebeccah L Sokol, Stephen N Oliphant, Shaun Bhatia, Elyse J Thulin, Michelle Degli Esposti, and Zainab Hans.
    • Institute for Firearm Injury Prevention, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan; School of Social Work, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan. Electronic address: rlsokol@umich.edu.
    • Am J Prev Med. 2024 Nov 1; 67 (5): 641649641-649.

    IntroductionThe number of U.S. adults who own and carry a firearm for self-defense is rising. Research has established that owning or carrying a firearm increases the risk of injury and death for firearm owners and the people in their lives. This study sought to better understand this paradox by estimating associations of perceived specific and diffuse threats with firearm behaviors among U.S. adults.MethodsThe authors used data from the 2023 National Firearm Attitudes and Behaviors Study, a nationally representative cross-sectional survey of U.S. adults. Binary and ordinal logistic regression estimated associations of perceived specific (fear of attack in the community, fear of someone breaking into the home) and diffuse threats (belief in a dangerous world) with firearm ownership and carriage frequency, overall and stratified by gender. Adjusted models controlled for violence exposures and demographic characteristics. The authors conducted analyses in 2024.ResultsAmong all U.S. adults, the perceived specific threat of someone breaking into the home was associated with firearm ownership (AOR: 1.09 [0.98, 1.23]). Among firearm-owning adults, the diffuse threat of belief in a dangerous world was associated with firearm carriage frequency (1.11 [0.98, 1.25]). Both the associations persisted among men (AORs = 1.27 [1.05-1.52] and 1.15 [1.01-1.31], respectively), but analyses found no associations between perceived threats and firearm behaviors among women.ConclusionsPerceived threats are associated with firearm behaviors among U.S. men, even after accounting for the actual violence they report experiencing or witnessing.Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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