Violence and Ownership
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Scientists in the social and behavioral sciences deal with many datarelated
obstacles in conducting empirical research. These include lack
of relevant data, data that are error-ridden, and data that are not based
on properly designed statistical samples (i.e., are unrepresentative) of the
targeted population. These obstacles are particularly difficult in firearms
research. In firearms and violence research, the outcomes of interest, although
large in absolute numbers, are statistically rare events that are not
observed with great frequency, if at all, in many ongoing national probability
samples. Moreover, response problems are thought to be particularly
severe in surveys of firearms ownership and violence. In the committee’s
view, the major scientific obstacle for advancing the body of research and
further developing credible empirical research to inform policy on firearms
is the lack of reliable and valid data.
This chapter summarizes some of the key data collection systems used
to assess firearms policies, describes some of the key properties of useful
research data, and offers some suggestions for how to begin to develop data
that can answer the basic policy questions. There are no easy solutions to
resolving the existing data-related problems. Often, we find that the existing
data are insufficient, but how and whether to develop alternative data
sources remain open questions. For these reasons the committee urges a
significant increase in methodological work on measurement in the area of
firearms ownership and violence.
The committee does not wish to paint an overly pessimistic picture of
this research area. The existing body of research, as described in the other
chapters of the report, has shed light on some of the most fundamental
questions related to firearms and violence. However, in key data areas—the
availability of firearms, the use of firearms, and the role of firearms in
injuries and death—critical information is absent.