The Universal Pursuit of Safety and the Gun Debate
The Universal Pursuit of Safety and the Gun Debate
New research by SHP courtesy faculty member Marcella Alsan shows that beneath the country's polarization over gun violence, those who own firearms and those who don't share the common goal of safety, but disagree about the means.
Lethal firearm ownership has been deeply polarizing in the United States. In this NBER working paper, SHP courtesy faculty member Marcella Alsan, MD, PhD, shows that beneath this polarization, owners and non-owners alike share a common objective: safety. But they disagree sharply about whether lethal firearms achieve it.
Using an original survey of more than 5,400 respondents combined with randomized experiments, Alsan and her colleagues document that owners feel safe and confident with firearms, while non-owners on balance feel less safe around them and perceive large private costs and social harms.
Demand for lethal firearms is nonetheless potentially large and growing: one-third of non-owners express interest in acquiring one—these individuals report the lowest day-to-day safety—while very few owners would consider reducing their holdings.
