Adults tend to overestimate the degree to which home firearm access protects people during home invasions while underestimating the impact on suicide risk, according to Rutgers Health study. About 40% of households in the United States report firearm access and the majority of firearm owners report typically storing at least one of their firearms unsecured. The most common reason individuals provide for when asked why they store firearms unsecured is defense, with many reporting that firearms are unrelated to suicide risk despite robust data to the contrary.
A new study by the New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center clarified the extent to which U.S. adults exhibit skewed perceptions of risk and safety by collecting a nationally representative sample of 8,009 adults in May and asking participants about the extent to which they believe home firearm access is helpful in protecting people during a home invasion and to what extent home firearm access impacts suicide risk.
The study appears in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. To read the full story.