Journal article
Rural Teen Exposure to Firearm Violence
Pediatrics (Evanston), Vol.156(5), e2024070342
11/2025
DOI: 10.1542/peds.2024-070342
PMID: 41125248
Abstract
To investigate rural adolescents' personal experiences with firearm-related violence and how those experiences might affect their attitudes/beliefs toward firearms and safety strategies.
A convenience sample of 2021 National FFA (formerly Future Farmers of America) Convention & Expo attendees were anonymously surveyed via paper or phone (Qualtrics). Descriptive, bivariate, and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed.
A total of 3296 adolescents aged 13 to 18 years participated. Nearly half lived on a farm, one-third lived in the country/not on a farm, and one-fifth lived in town. More than one-third (35%) reported experiencing a school lockdown due to potential firearm violence concerns. Participants from the South had 1.7-fold greater odds of experiencing a lockdown than those from the Northeast. Approximately 10% had personally seen someone threatened with a firearm. Nearly half (46%) stated they knew someone who had been killed or injured by gunfire, and among these adolescents, 46% knew someone with an unintentional injury/death. Respondents with a handgun in the home had 1.6 times greater odds of knowing someone that was killed or injured by firearms. Adolescents who had experienced a school lockdown had greater odds of agreeing with multiple firearm safety interventions. Participants who knew someone that had been injured or killed by firearms had higher proportions that believed firearms in the home made them safer.
Our study found that many rural adolescents' lives were affected by firearm violence exposure, and compared with peers, those exposed had differences in their attitudes toward firearms and safety strategies.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Rural Teen Exposure to Firearm Violence
- Creators
- Megan R Sinik - Beth Israel Deaconess Medical CenterBenjamin M Linden - University of IowaKristel M Wetjen - University of IowaPamela J Hoogerwerf - University of IowaJunlin Liao - University of IowaCharles A Jennissen - University of Iowa
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Pediatrics (Evanston), Vol.156(5), e2024070342
- DOI
- 10.1542/peds.2024-070342
- PMID
- 41125248
- NLM abbreviation
- Pediatrics
- ISSN
- 0031-4005
- eISSN
- 1098-4275
- Publisher
- AMER ACAD PEDIATRICS
- Grant note
- University of Iowa Health Care Stead Family Children's Hospital's Injury Prevention ProgramUniversity of Iowa Health Care Stead Family Department of Pediatrics and Stead Family Children's HospitalInjury Prevention Program
We would like to acknowledge and thank the University of Iowa Health Care Stead Family Children's Hospital's Injury Prevention Program and the Firearm Injury Prevention Task force for their participation in developing and administering the survey that was used in this study. Special thanks to Lauren Mulford, Michael Hartley, Carolyn Minchk, and Joel Shilyansky, MD, for their help on this project and to Molly Byrnes, Alexis Moore, and Paige Batten for entering some of the data into Qualtrics. We are grateful for Gerene Denning, PhD, and her assistance in editing the manuscript. We also want to acknowledge and thank the University of Iowa Health Care Stead Family Department of Pediatrics and Stead Family Children's Hospital for its support of the Injury Prevention Program.
- Language
- English
- Electronic publication date
- 10/23/2025
- Date published
- 11/2025
- Academic Unit
- Stead Family Department of Pediatrics; Emergency Medicine; Surgery; Injury Prevention Research Center
- Record Identifier
- 9985019149302771
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