Gun Violence Citation
August 24, 2015 8:59 AM Subscribe
Help me find a citation for this statistic about gun violence in the United States.
One of the more compelling arguments I've heard against owning a handgun in one's house for protection is a fact about the two most common scenarios in which a handgun is discharged inside a private residence:
The #1 most common scenario is suicide. The #2 most common scenario is mistaking someone you know for an intruder and accidentally shooting them. Not sure where actual home defense from a burglar/invader falls.
The problem is, I can't find a citation for this. I can find information about firearm use with respect to suicides vs. homicides (suicides are much more common), but I can't find the specific stat about "discharge of handgun in a private residence" that jumped out at me so many years ago.
Bonus points: links to a research paper with this information and methodology, if there is one. I have university-level access so feel free to link to any relevant journal or study.
One of the more compelling arguments I've heard against owning a handgun in one's house for protection is a fact about the two most common scenarios in which a handgun is discharged inside a private residence:
The #1 most common scenario is suicide. The #2 most common scenario is mistaking someone you know for an intruder and accidentally shooting them. Not sure where actual home defense from a burglar/invader falls.
The problem is, I can't find a citation for this. I can find information about firearm use with respect to suicides vs. homicides (suicides are much more common), but I can't find the specific stat about "discharge of handgun in a private residence" that jumped out at me so many years ago.
Bonus points: links to a research paper with this information and methodology, if there is one. I have university-level access so feel free to link to any relevant journal or study.
Best answer: Here's a few good links:
Slate
From an nih study
posted by chasles at 9:24 AM on August 24, 2015 [4 favorites]
Slate
From an nih study
posted by chasles at 9:24 AM on August 24, 2015 [4 favorites]
Part of the abstract from Am J Epidemiology (2004):
Data from a US mortality follow-back survey were analyzed to determine whether having a firearm in the home increases the risk of a violent death in the home and whether risk varies by storage practice, type of gun, or number of guns in the home. Those persons with guns in the home were at greater risk than those without guns in the home of dying from a homicide in the home (adjusted odds ratio = 1.9, 95% confidence interval: 1.1, 3.4). They were also at greater risk of dying from a firearm homicide, but risk varied by age and whether the person was living with others at the time of death. The risk of dying from a suicide in the home was greater for males in homes with guns than for males without guns in the home (adjusted odds ratio = 10.4, 95% confidence interval: 5.8, 18.9). Persons with guns in the home were also more likely to have died from suicide committed with a firearm than from one committed by using a different method (adjusted odds ratio = 31.1, 95% confidence interval: 19.5, 49.6).
Link goes to abstract and the publication is freely available.
I tried to find something more recent - this paper is cited by at least another 100 publications, and I don't want to dig through them all, but drop it into google scholar and see what other publications cite this study if you need to find a more recent publication/study.
posted by Wolfster at 9:28 AM on August 24, 2015
Data from a US mortality follow-back survey were analyzed to determine whether having a firearm in the home increases the risk of a violent death in the home and whether risk varies by storage practice, type of gun, or number of guns in the home. Those persons with guns in the home were at greater risk than those without guns in the home of dying from a homicide in the home (adjusted odds ratio = 1.9, 95% confidence interval: 1.1, 3.4). They were also at greater risk of dying from a firearm homicide, but risk varied by age and whether the person was living with others at the time of death. The risk of dying from a suicide in the home was greater for males in homes with guns than for males without guns in the home (adjusted odds ratio = 10.4, 95% confidence interval: 5.8, 18.9). Persons with guns in the home were also more likely to have died from suicide committed with a firearm than from one committed by using a different method (adjusted odds ratio = 31.1, 95% confidence interval: 19.5, 49.6).
Link goes to abstract and the publication is freely available.
I tried to find something more recent - this paper is cited by at least another 100 publications, and I don't want to dig through them all, but drop it into google scholar and see what other publications cite this study if you need to find a more recent publication/study.
posted by Wolfster at 9:28 AM on August 24, 2015
Response by poster: I'm pretty sure the NIH study Chasles links is what I heard paraphrased, though interestingly suicide isn't #1; criminal assault/homicide is #1.
Thanks for the answers, guys!
posted by Ndwright at 9:42 AM on August 24, 2015
Thanks for the answers, guys!
posted by Ndwright at 9:42 AM on August 24, 2015
Mod note: Couple comments removed. This is neither the place for an argument about the merits of guns nor an argument about comment deletions; please drop it.
posted by cortex (staff) at 9:43 AM on August 24, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by cortex (staff) at 9:43 AM on August 24, 2015 [2 favorites]
The Epidemiology of Firearm Violence in the Twenty-First Century United States, Garen J. Wintemute, Violence Prevention Research Program; Department of Emergency Medicine; University of California, Davis, Sacramento, California 9581 (PDF) notes that
In 2012, there were 32,288 deaths from firearm violence in the United States, including 11,622and that:
homicides and 20,666 suicides...
... Firearm homicide alone, and by extension firearm violence, was the leading cause of death for Black men ages 15–34 in 2012; unintentional injuries ranked second. Among White and Hispanic men ages 15–34, firearm violence ranked second after unintentional injuries. Firearm violence ranked second as a cause of death among Black women ages 15–2. ...posted by straw at 10:35 AM on August 24, 2015
« Older Help me figure out what I want to do with the rest... | Santa Claus needs a new dry cleaner Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by zombieflanders at 9:19 AM on August 24, 2015 [2 favorites]