RT Article
T1 Public Opinion About Gun Control Post–Sandy Hook
JF Criminal justice policy review
VO 28
IS 3
SP 255
OP 278
A1 Wozniak, Kevin H.
LA English
YR 2017
UL https://krimdok.uni-tuebingen.de/Record/1725466104
AB I use data from a national public opinion poll conducted 4 months after the mass shooting of teachers and students in Sandy Hook Elementary School to analyze the content and predictors of public opinion about gun control and gun control politics. I find that a slim majority of Americans favors a semiautomatic weapon ban and proposals to make gun control laws stricter, and a large majority supports a federal background check law. Consistent with previous research, I also find that both instrumental concerns and cultural beliefs are significantly related to people’s opinions about gun control, but the strongest, most consistent predictors of people’s gun control preferences are their political beliefs and affiliations. I conclude by discussing the implications of these findings for the national gun control debate.
K1 Public opinion
K1 Gun control
K1 Semiautomatic weapon
K1 Background check
DO 10.1177/0887403415577192