Political affiliation moderates the link between gun violence exposure and firearm behaviors via perceptions of utility, safety, and threat.

Background: Gun violence exposure (GVE) is associated with a range of cognitive and behavioral outcomes. However, few studies have assessed how different forms of GVE relate to perceptions of safety, threat sensitivity, and views about the utility of firearms, and how these factors together influence firearm-related behavior. Moreover, studies have not explored whether these effects may differ by political orientation. This study examines how GVE is associated with perceptions of safety, threat sensitivity, and firearm utility, and how these perceptions relate to firearm carrying and storage practices across political groups.

Methods: The data for this study come from a subset of adults with firearm access (n = 3,042) drawn from a nationally representative sample of 8,010 U.S. adults. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to assess the relationships between GVE, threat sensitivity, perceptions about the utility of firearms, perceived neighborhood safety, and firearm-related outcomes. Multiple-group SEM assessed how political orientation affects those relationships.

Results: Liberals were more cognitively responsive to GVE (i.e., increased threat sensitivity and decreased neighborhood safety), while conservatives were more behaviorally responsive (i.e., increased carrying). Additionally, perceived utility of firearms was the most robust predictor of carrying and unsecure storage, consistently predicting firearm-related behavior in the general sample and within each group.

Conclusions: GVE can occur through multiple means, direct and indirect, each with distinct effects on perceptions of safety, threat, and firearm utility, as well as on firearm-related behavior. The perceived utility of firearms seems to play a central role in the relationship between GVE and firearm-related behavior. Political affiliation influences how individuals interpret and respond to such exposure. Future research should investigate the reasons for group differences in response to GVE.