Weapon Possession Among College Students

Abstract

Weapon possession on college campuses causes great concern, but there remains a lack of research examining the determinants of this phenomenon. Previous studies addressing weapon possession have primarily focused on either K-12 or the general adult population. Unlike previous studies, this study examined the weapon possession among college students using data collected from a mid-sized university in Missouri, and 451 students participated. Weapon possession and other theoretical factors were measured through the self-administered survey. Logistical regression analysis revealed that weapon socialization was the most significant factor in predicting student weapon carrying. Also, gender and age were significant factors in explaining campus-based weapon possession. This research has a limitation with generalizability because the data were collected from only a single university with convenient sampling. Future studies need to cover a wider range of college students from a variety of different universities with random sampling.

Exploring Student, Faculty, and Staff Support for Concealed Firearms on Campus Over Time

“…Experience with firearms and gun ownership has been an important predictor of support for campus carry in previous research (Bennett et al, 2012;Hassett et al, 2020;Hayes et al, 2021;Jang et al, 2014Jang et al, , 2015McMahon-Howard et al, 2019Nodeland & Saber, 2019;Price et al, 2014;Schildkraut, Jennings, et al, 2018;Thompson, Price, Dake, Teeple, Bassler, et al, 2013;Verrecchia & Hendrix, 2017). There are several important nuances to the relationship between experience with firearms and support for campus carry.…”