A Third Of Chicago Residents Carry Concealed Handguns Around Before They Hit 40
A 25-year-long study has found that around 32 percent of people who grew up in Chicago have carried a concealed firearm with them at least once by the time they reach the age of 40.
The research suggests that nearly half of men—48 percent—have carried a concealed gun by the age of 40, compared to 16 percent of women. Across other major cities in the United States, the carry rates are probably similar.
The study is one of the only ones that tracks gun usage for decades in the same population. It was conducted by researchers from the University of Cambridge, the University of Pennsylvania, and Harvard University.
It included data from a sample of 3,403 children originally from Chicago. They were tracked for a 25-year period from 1994 to 2021. The children were randomly drawn from 80 of 343 neighborhoods in Chicago.
The latest study revealed that two-thirds of those who carried a gun began the practice in adulthood, while a third started doing it during their adolescent years.
The act of carrying a gun during adolescence and adulthood may be brought about by different concerns. Those who started carrying guns as teenagers did so as a response to experiencing direct gun violence. For those who began carrying guns over the age of 21, this was not true.
“Among adolescents, we found a strong association between either witnessing a shooting or being shot and beginning to carry soon after,” said Dr. Charles Lanfear, the lead author of the study from the University of Cambridge.
“The majority of people who ever carried a concealed handgun start doing so in adulthood. For those adults, we found no link between direct exposure to gun violence and gun carrying.”
The pattern indicates that adults may carry guns due to broader fears, such as the perception of the world as a dangerous place and doubts about law enforcement’s ability to ensure public safety. In contrast, adolescent gun carrying is more likely associated with personal encounters of gun violence.
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The study also made clear that carrying a concealed firearm is now common practice for Americans. Between 1995 and 2021, about 89 percent of firearm homicides in the U.S. were committed with a handgun. Over the past 25 years, U.S. gun stock has doubled, and the number of homicides has increased.
Furthermore, the research team discovered a racial component to gun-carrying. Compared to Hispanic and white individuals, Black individuals carried guns at a rate more than twice as great.
A previous study showed that Black city residents were twice as likely to witness a shooting by age 40 than white residents.
Interestingly enough, white residents, who are the least likely to witness gun violence, are also the most likely to begin carrying a firearm as a response to gun violence.
The study was published in Science Advances.
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