scholarly journals Firearm Purchasing and Firearm Violence in the First Months of the Coronavirus Pandemic in the United States

Author(s):  
Julia P. Schleimer ◽  
Christopher D. McCort ◽  
Veronica A. Pear ◽  
Aaron Shev ◽  
Elizabeth Tomsich ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTImportanceFirearm violence is a significant public health and safety problem in the United States. A surge in firearm purchases following the onset of the coronavirus pandemic may increase rates of firearm violence.ObjectiveTo estimate the association between changes in firearm purchasing and interpersonal firearm violence during the coronavirus pandemic.DesignCross-sectional time series study. We estimate the difference between observed rates of firearm purchases and those predicted by seasonal autoregressive integrated moving average models. Using negative binomial models, we then estimate the association between excess firearm purchases and rates of interpersonal firearm violence within states, controlling for confounders.SettingThe 48 contiguous states and the District of Columbia. Hawaii and Alaska are excluded due to missing or incomplete data.ExposureThe difference between observed and expected rates of firearm purchases in March through May 2020, approximated by National Instant Criminal Background Check System records.Main Outcome and MeasureFatal and nonfatal injuries from interpersonal firearm violence, recorded in the Gun Violence Archive.ResultsWe estimate that there were 2.1 million excess firearm purchases from March through May 2020—a 64.3% increase over expected volume, and an increase of 644.4 excess purchases per 100,000 population. We estimate a relative rate of death and injury from firearm violence of 1.015 (95% Confidence Interval (CI): 1.005 to 1.025) for every 100 excess purchases per 100,000, in models that incorporate variation in purchasing across states and control for effects of the pandemic common to all states. This reflects an increase of 776 fatal and nonfatal injuries (95% CI: 216 to 1,335) over the number expected had no increase in purchasing occurred.Conclusions and RelevanceWe find a significant increase in firearm violence in the United States associated with the coronavirus pandemic-related surge in firearm purchasing. Our findings are consistent with existing research. Firearm violence prevention strategies may be particularly important during the pandemic.KEY POINTSQuestionIs the coronavirus-related surge in firearm purchasing associated with changes in rates of interpersonal firearm violence?FindingsThis cross-sectional time series study suggests the recent increase in firearm purchases—an estimated 2.1 million excess purchases nationally between March and May 2020—is associated with a statistically significant increase in firearm violence. We estimate an increase of 776 fatal and nonfatal injuries (95% CI: 216 to 1,335) in the US over the number expected for those months had there been no increase in purchasing.MeaningDuring the coronavirus pandemic, an acute increase in firearm access is associated with an increase in firearm violence.

2017 ◽  
Vol 135 (2) ◽  
pp. 150-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Abuabara ◽  
Allan Abuabara ◽  
Carin Albino Luçolli Tonchuk

ABSTRACT CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE: The World Health Organization recognizes suicide as a public health priority. Increased knowledge of suicide risk factors is needed in order to be able to adopt effective prevention strategies. The aim of this study was to analyze and compare the association between the Gini coefficient (which is used to measure inequality) and suicide death rates over a 14-year period (2000-2013) in Brazil and in the United States (US). The hypothesis put forward was that reduction of income inequality is accompanied by reduction of suicide rates. DESIGN AND SETTING: Descriptive cross-sectional time-series study in Brazil and in the US. METHODS: Population, death and suicide death data were extracted from the DATASUS database in Brazil and from the National Center for Health Statistics in the US. Gini coefficient data were obtained from the World Development Indicators. Time series analysis was performed on Brazilian and American official data regarding the number of deaths caused by suicide between 2000 and 2013 and the Gini coefficients of the two countries. The suicide trends were examined and compared. RESULTS: Brazil and the US present converging Gini coefficients, mainly due to reduction of inequality in Brazil over the last decade. However, suicide rates are not converging as hypothesized, but are in fact rising in both countries. CONCLUSION: The hypothesis that reduction of income inequality is accompanied by reduction of suicide rates was not verified.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lawrence J. Zigerell

A widely-cited study reported evidence that White Americans reported higher ratings of how much Whites are the victims of discrimination in the United States than of how much Blacks are the victims of discrimination in the United States. However, much fewer than half of White Americans rated discrimination against Whites in the United States today to be greater or more frequent than discrimination against Blacks in the United States today, in data from the American National Election Studies 2012 Time Series Study or in preregistered analyses of data from the American National Election Studies 2016 Time Series Study or from a 2017 national nonprobability survey. Given that relative discrimination against Black Americans is a compelling justification for policies to reduce Black disadvantage, results from these three surveys suggest that White Americans' policy preferences have much potential to move in a direction that disfavors programs intended to reduce Black disadvantage.


2007 ◽  
Vol 52 (02) ◽  
pp. 251-263 ◽  
Author(s):  
DODO J. THAMPAPILLAI

The paper employs a methodology that enables the elicitation of the price and quantity of environmental capital (KN) at an aggregate macroeconomic level. The stock of KN considered here is confined to the air-shed of an economy that gets utilized in the process of economic growth. A time series study of the prices and quantities of KN enables an appreciation of the changing value of nature in economic growth. Despite improvements in the rate of utilization of KN, there is insufficient evidence of decreasing scarcity of KN in the case of both Australia and the United States.


2021 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lawrence James Zigerell

A widely-cited study reported evidence that White Americans reported higher ratings of how much Whites are the victims of discrimination in the United States than of how much Blacks are the victims of discrimination in the United States. However, much fewer than half of White Americans rated discrimination against Whites in the United States today to be greater or more frequent than discrimination against Blacks in the United States today, in data from the American National Election Studies 2012 Time Series Study or in preregistered analyses of data from the American National Election Studies 2016 Time Series Study or from a 2017 national nonprobability survey. Given that relative discrimination against Black Americans is a compelling justification for policies to reduce Black disadvantage, results from these three surveys suggest that White Americans’ policy preferences have much potential to move in a direction that disfavors programs intended to reduce Black disadvantage.


1992 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 97-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Lester ◽  
Bijou Yang

SummaryIn a time series study of the USA from 1933 to 1984, fertility rates were associated with the suicide rates of those aged 15–44. The higher the fertility rate the lower the suicide rate for these age groups, for both whites and non-whites, and for both men and women. The results were seen as supporting Durkheim's theory of suicide.


2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Juan Alberto Vázquez Muñoz ◽  
Nancy Ivonne Muller Durán ◽  
Josué Zavaleta González

This paper aims to evaluate the fiscal policy implemented by the USMCA economies to deal with the COVID-19 economic crisis. We estimate the economic capacity (potential output) and the Cyclical Primary Balance as a percentage of GDP (CPB) of each of the scrutinized economies. Then we obtain the Cyclical Adjusted Primary Balance as a percentage of GDP (CAPB) as the difference between the Primary Balance (PB) and the CPB. Unlike previous CPB estimations, we obtain the potential output reference as the Economic Capacity methodology (Shaikh and Moudud, 2004), which overcome some alternative methodologies problems. According to our empirical analysis, an asymmetric fiscal policy stands across USMCA economies. Canada and the United States are using a countercyclical fiscal policy, while Mexico uses a procyclical one. Mexico should abandon its current fiscal policy, implement an alternative to support households and firms during crisis periods, and execute a progressive fiscal reform. Our paper's limitation is that we use PB and not its components to estimate the CPB; however, we use a more extended time series, contributing to obtaining more robust results.


Criminology ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 889-928 ◽  
Author(s):  
JACOB I. STOWELL ◽  
STEVEN F. MESSNER ◽  
KELLY F. MCGEEVER ◽  
LAWRENCE E. RAFFALOVICH

2010 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vladimir Atanasov ◽  
Audra Boone ◽  
David Haushalter

AbstractThis paper examines the relation between the performance and valuations of publicly traded subsidiaries in the United States and the ownership stake of their parent companies. Cross-sectional and time-series tests demonstrate that subsidiaries of parents that own a substantial minority stake exhibit negative peer-adjusted operating performance and are valued at a 23% median discount relative to peers. In contrast, majority-owned and fully divested subsidiaries show no abnormal performance or valuations. The results of our study indicate that the association between parent ownership and subsidiary performance is nonlinear and that some parents behave opportunistically toward their publicly traded subsidiaries.


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