Brief firearm safety talks more than double openness to out-of-home storage
A brief chat about firearm safety can sharply increase willingness among gun owners to consider temporarily storing their firearms outside the home during times of crisis, a step that could help reduce suicide risk, according to a Rutgers-led study.
A brief chat about firearm safety can sharply increase willingness among gun owners to consider temporarily storing their firearms outside the home during times of crisis, a step that could help reduce suicide risk, according to a Rutgers-led study.
The short version
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- Firearm access can increase the risk of suicide , particularly during periods of acute distress.
- One approach to reducing that risk is to temporarily make firearms less accessible during crises, such as storing them outside the home.
What happened
Despite the potential benefits of this approach, however, many firearm owners are reluctant to consider temporarily storing their firearms elsewhere. Researchers examined whether a brief conversation about safer firearm storage could increase willingness to use temporary out-of-home storage during times of distress.
Why it matters
The study, published in the journal Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior , analyzed data from 232 members of the Mississippi National Guard who had access to firearms in their homes.
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