Youth Perspectives on Firearm Safety in Education in Schools

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Abstract

Rural communities have increasingly witnessed rising levels of firearm injury, especially among young people, where firearms are now the leading cause of death for youth in the United States, including pediatric suicides and homicides. This places enormous importance on primary prevention of youth firearm injury, confronting the problem with a multifaceted approach. In response, some communities are placing school-based firearm safety education and training at the forefront of efforts to combat firearm injury. Despite an increase in support for firearm safety education, there is a lack of data on whether students are interested in firearm safety topics and evidence of their effectiveness in preventing injury or shifting attitudes.
We report results from a survey of high school students in rural Pennsylvania to understand their 1) attitudes towards firearms, 2) history of firearms exposure, 3) and interest in specific topics related to firearm safety. This study does not seek to promote firearm safety education as an alternative to other strategies used to prevent gun violence in schools and among youth. Instead, we aim to uncover the feasibility and acceptability of firearm safety education among young people, and how interest differs based on youth attitudes, exposure and existing training with firearms.

Authors

• Richard Stansfield, Rutgers University

• Catherine Heitz, Rutgers University-Camden