TY - JOUR
T1 - “What does it depend on?”
T2 - Perceptions of safety related to firearms in homes and neighborhoods
AU - Pallin, Rocco
AU - Wintemute, Garen J.
AU - Kravitz-Wirtz, Nicole
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 Pallin et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
PY - 2021/12
Y1 - 2021/12
N2 - Background Though research has established that firearms in the home increase risk for injury and death, a substantial number of Americans, especially gun owners, believe that guns make their homes safer. More than half of gun owners in a nationally-representative survey said “it depends” when asked whether guns make their homes safer or more dangerous, but little is known about the factors that affect perceived safety. Objective To determine whether the relationship between the presence of firearms and perceived home or neighborhood safety is fixed or depends on additional factors and to identify the additional factors on which it depends. Methods A mixed-methods cross-sectional analysis of the 2018 state-representative California Safety and Wellbeing Survey (n = 2558, completion rate 49%), including calculation of weighted proportions and qualitative analysis of write-in responses. Findings One in six respondents (17.2%, 95% CI 14.9% to 19.7%) reported “it depends” when asked whether a gun in their home made the home a safer or more dangerous place to be (“the home scenario”). One in six (16.6%, 95% CI 14.3% to 19.2%) reported “it depends” when asked whether the neighborhood would be safer if all neighbors had guns in the home (“the neighborhood scenario”). For the home scenario, 28.3% (95% CI 21.9% to 35.7%) cited firearm owner characteristics (e.g., training and proficiency, temperament, and mental health), 28.4% (95% CI 22.3% to 35.5%) cited firearm storage and access, and 28.0% (95% CI 21.5% to 35.7%) cited intended use for guns as factors affecting perceived safety. For the neighborhood scenario, respondents overwhelmingly cited gun owner characteristics (72.1%, 95% CI 63.4% to 79.3%). Factors on which “it depends” varied by gun ownership status. Conclusion Perceived safety when firearms are in the home depends on numerous factors. Understanding these factors may inform tailored, targeted messaging and interventions for firearm injury prevention.
AB - Background Though research has established that firearms in the home increase risk for injury and death, a substantial number of Americans, especially gun owners, believe that guns make their homes safer. More than half of gun owners in a nationally-representative survey said “it depends” when asked whether guns make their homes safer or more dangerous, but little is known about the factors that affect perceived safety. Objective To determine whether the relationship between the presence of firearms and perceived home or neighborhood safety is fixed or depends on additional factors and to identify the additional factors on which it depends. Methods A mixed-methods cross-sectional analysis of the 2018 state-representative California Safety and Wellbeing Survey (n = 2558, completion rate 49%), including calculation of weighted proportions and qualitative analysis of write-in responses. Findings One in six respondents (17.2%, 95% CI 14.9% to 19.7%) reported “it depends” when asked whether a gun in their home made the home a safer or more dangerous place to be (“the home scenario”). One in six (16.6%, 95% CI 14.3% to 19.2%) reported “it depends” when asked whether the neighborhood would be safer if all neighbors had guns in the home (“the neighborhood scenario”). For the home scenario, 28.3% (95% CI 21.9% to 35.7%) cited firearm owner characteristics (e.g., training and proficiency, temperament, and mental health), 28.4% (95% CI 22.3% to 35.5%) cited firearm storage and access, and 28.0% (95% CI 21.5% to 35.7%) cited intended use for guns as factors affecting perceived safety. For the neighborhood scenario, respondents overwhelmingly cited gun owner characteristics (72.1%, 95% CI 63.4% to 79.3%). Factors on which “it depends” varied by gun ownership status. Conclusion Perceived safety when firearms are in the home depends on numerous factors. Understanding these factors may inform tailored, targeted messaging and interventions for firearm injury prevention.
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U2 - 10.1371/journal.pone.0261038
DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0261038
M3 - Article
C2 - 34965246
AN - SCOPUS:85122006563
VL - 16
JO - PLoS One
JF - PLoS One
SN - 1932-6203
IS - 12 December
M1 - e0261038
ER -