Toward a Status Anxiety Theory of Macro-level Firearm Demand

Steidley, Trent; Kosla, Martin T.

doi:10.1177/2329496517725332

Cited by 24 publications

(33 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…The idea is that gun owners need guns to protect themselves because they are irrational cowards. This perspective has been advanced by journalists (Bishin, 2018; Blow, 2015) and scientists (Carlson, 2015; Hauser & Kleck, 2013; Kleck et al, 2011; Steidley & Kosla, 2018; Wintemute, 2008). For example, Blow (2015) made the following claim in the New York Times : “These people [gun owners] are afraid.…”

Section: Two Theoretcial Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is at least some empirical support for the idea that crime and status anxiety may increase the demand for firearms (Anuradha, 2017; Clotfelter, 1981; Lizotte & Bordua, 1980; Steidley & Kosla, 2018). Perceived risk of victimization and fear of crime might also lead some people who do not own guns to consider acquiring a gun (Anuradha, 2017; Carlson, 2015; Hauser & Kleck, 2013; Kleck et al, 2011; Stroebe et al, 2017; Warr & Ellison, 2000), but these processes are not uniform in the literature (Cao, Cullen, & Link, 1997; DeFronzo, 1979; Lizotte & Bordua, 1980; Warr & Ellison, 2000; Wright, Rossi, & Daly, 1983).…”

Section: Two Theoretcial Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We ask whether gun owners are more or less afraid than people who do not own guns. Although several studies have considered the seemingly bidirectional association between gun ownership and the experience of fear (Clotfelter, 1981; DeFronzo, 1979; Hauser & Kleck, 2013; Kleck, Kovandzic, Saber, & Hauser, 2011; Lizotte & Bordua, 1980; Steidley & Kosla, 2018; Stroebe, Leander, & Kruglanski, 2017; Stroud, 2012; Warr & Ellison, 2000), this body of research has focused primarily on fear of victimization. We build on previous work by using national survey data to test two hypotheses with a broad range of fear-related outcomes, including previously unexplored specific phobias (e.g., fear of animals and strangers) and more commonly studied fears associated with being victimized (e.g., fear of being mugged and murdered).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Gun ownership and fear

Dowd‐Arrow

Hill

Burdette

2019

SSM - Population Health

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Americans can be divided into two groups: those who own guns and those who do not. Although people who own guns and people who do not own guns are often separated along social, cultural, and political lines, it is unclear whether these divisions might extend to population differences in emotional experience. In this paper, we use national cross-sectional data from the 2014 Chapman University Survey on American Fears (n = 1385) to test whether gun owners are more or less afraid than people who do not own guns. We build on previous work by testing two hypotheses with a broad range of fear-related outcomes, including specific phobias and fears associated with being victimized. The symptom perspective argues that gun ownership is a behavioral expression of fear, that gun owners need guns to protect themselves because they are irrational cowards. Although binary logistic regression models provided minimal support for this idea, there was some evidence to suggest that the odds of gun ownership are higher for people who report being afraid of being victimized by a random/mass shooting. The palliative perspective claims that gun ownership mitigates fear, that owning a powerful weapon is somehow soothing to individuals and their families. Ordinary least squares and negative binomial regression models suggest that people who own guns tend to report lower levels of phobias and victimization fears than people who do not own guns. This general pattern is observed across multiple indicators of fear (e.g., of animals, heights, zombies, and muggings), multiple outcome specifications (continuous and count), and with adjustments for age, gender, race/ethnicity, education, household income, marital status, the presence of children, religious identity, religiosity, religious attendance, political orientation, region of residence, and urban residence. Additional longitudinal research is needed to confirm our findings with a wider range of covariates and fear-related outcomes.

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Section: Two Theoretcial Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Two Theoretcial Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Gun ownership and fear

Dowd‐Arrow

Hill

Burdette

2019

SSM - Population Health

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“…More attention to the role of culture in understanding gun attitudes and behaviors is indeed warranted (Braman et al 2005;Celinska 2007;Kahan and Braman 2003;Seate et al 2012). Steidley and Kosla's (2018) work on status anxiety and gun demand is an important step in this direction. Notwithstanding these limitations, the present study's findings suggest that motivations for future gun ownership are complex.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fear, Anxiety, and Expectation: Gender Differences in Openness to Future Gun Ownership

Warner

2020

Violence and Gender

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There is extensive research on the correlates of gun ownership; however, less is known about the possible correlates of gun ownership among individuals who do not at present own firearms, but may be open to owning guns in the future. To that end, this study uses recently collected survey data from more than 900 nongun-owning U.S. adults to examine the factors associated with the likelihood of owning a gun in the future, motivations for prospective future ownership, and expectations about the perceived utility (i.e., empowerment) of future gun ownership. In addition to assessing the effect of fear of crime and victimization on these outcomes, analyses also examine how broader economic and cultural anxieties influence attitudes toward guns. Findings show that male nonowners are more open to future gun owning than females, and perceive greater empowerment (e.g., feeling safe; feeling respected; feeling in control) if they were to acquire a gun. Female nonowners are more fearful of crime and victimization than males, and are more likely to consider owning a gun in the future primarily for protection. Cultural, but not economic, anxieties (e.g., concerns about American identity; resistance toward immigration) along with adherence to more traditional masculine ideals (e.g., a man should be physically tough) were consistently associated with all three outcomes, for both males and females. Gender differences were reduced in some instances, but generally persisted, even after accounting for several measures of fears, risks, threats, and anxieties.

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“…First, instead of alleviating fear, guns may serve as behavioral expressions of fear. The idea is that many people own guns because they are afraid of demographic shifts, failing institutions, government threats, and losing their weapons (Buttrick, 2020;Dowd-Arrow, Hill, and Burdette, 2019;Jiobu and Curry, 2001;Shapira and Simon, 2018;Steidley and Kosla, 2018;Stroebe, Pontus Leander, and Kruglanski, 2017). Buttrick (2020:847) reflects the underlying concern: "Although guns may make their owners feel better in the moment, they cannot address the fundamental sources of gun owners' threat and instead reinforce those threatening beliefs; consequently, protective gun owners, using their guns to attempt to cope with ever-increasing stress and unable to divest from the gun culture that has become so central to their identity, have trouble disengaging from this cycle."…”

Section: Why Guns Should Undermine Life Satisfactionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Gun Ownership and Life Satisfaction in the United States

Hill

Dowd‐Arrow

Burdette

et al. 2020

Social Science Quarterly

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ObjectiveAlthough there is little empirical evidence linking gun ownership with personal well‐being, speculation is widespread in gun culture. In this article, we test whether people who own guns are more or less satisfied with their lives than people who do not own guns.MethodsWe employ data collected from three national surveys, the Baylor Religion Survey (2014), the Chapman University Survey on American Fears (2014), and the General Social Survey (2018) to formally assess this understudied association.ResultsIn adjusted models, gun ownership was unrelated to life satisfaction. This general pattern was consistent across surveys, different measures and specifications of life satisfaction, and a wide range of subgroups.ConclusionOur analyses contribute to the growing study of gun ownership and personal well‐being and challenge theoretical perspectives and cultural narratives about how owning a gun can contribute favorably to one's quality of life.

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Toward a Status Anxiety Theory of Macro-level Firearm Demand

Cited by 24 publications

References 47 publications

Gun ownership and fear

Gun ownership and fear

Fear, Anxiety, and Expectation: Gender Differences in Openness to Future Gun Ownership

Gun Ownership and Life Satisfaction in the United States

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