Department of Psychiatry, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont;
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Medical Center, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina.
Pediatrics. 2021 Aug;148(2). doi: 10.1542/peds.2020-042291. Epub 2021 Jul 1.
To test the associations of childhood domestic gun access with adult criminality and suicidality.
Analyses were based on a 20+ year prospective, community-representative study of 1420 children, who were assessed up to 8 times during childhood (ages 9-16; 6674 observations) about access to guns in their home. Participants were then followed-up 4 additional times in adulthood (ages 19, 21, 25, and 30; 4556 observations of 1336 participants) about criminality and suicidality.
During childhood, the 3-month prevalence of having a gun in the home was 55.1% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 52.1%-58.7%). Of the children in homes with guns, 63.3% (95% CI: 59.7%-66.9%) had access to a gun, and 25.0% (95% CI: 21.2%-28.8%) owned a gun themselves. Having gun access as a child was associated with higher levels of adult criminality (odds ratios = 1.1-3.5) and suicidality (odds ratios = 2.9-4.4), even after adjusting for childhood correlates of gun access. Risk of adult criminality and suicidality among those with childhood gun access was greatest in male individuals, those living in urban areas, and children with a history of behavior problems. Even in these groups, however, most children did not display adult criminality or suicidality.
Childhood gun access is prospectively associated with later adult criminality and suicidality in specific groups of children.
测试儿童期家中枪支可及性与成年犯罪和自杀的关联。
分析基于一项 20 多年的前瞻性、社区代表性研究，共纳入 1420 名儿童，他们在儿童期（9-16 岁；6674 次观察）期间最多接受了 8 次关于家中枪支可及性的评估。随后，参与者在成年期（19、21、25 和 30 岁；1336 名参与者中的 4556 次观察）接受了 4 次额外的关于犯罪和自杀的随访。
在儿童期，家中枪支的 3 个月患病率为 55.1%（95%置信区间：52.1%-58.7%）。家中有枪的儿童中，63.3%（95%置信区间：59.7%-66.9%）可以接触到枪支，25.0%（95%置信区间：21.2%-28.8%）自己拥有枪支。儿童期有枪支可及性与成年后更高水平的犯罪（优势比=1.1-3.5）和自杀（优势比=2.9-4.4）相关，即使在校正了与枪支可及性相关的儿童期因素后也是如此。在有儿童期枪支可及性的个体中，男性、居住在城市地区和有行为问题史的个体成年后发生犯罪和自杀的风险最高。然而，即使在这些群体中，大多数儿童也没有表现出成年后的犯罪或自杀行为。
儿童期枪支可及性与特定群体的成年后犯罪和自杀有前瞻性关联。
