Ash P, Kellermann A L, Fuqua-Whitley D, Johnson A
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
JAMA. 1996 Jun 12;275(22):1754-8.
To learn how, when, where, and why juvenile offenders acquire guns.
Following acquisition of informed consent, we conducted semistructured interviews between June and November 1995 with a convenience sample of 63 juvenile offenders aged 13 through 18 years, each of whom was incarcerated at a detention center in metropolitan Atlanta, Ga.
Five detention centers in metropolitan Atlanta.
Frequency of handgun acquisition and use, age at and method of first handgun acquisition, feelings experienced when carrying guns, development of gun-carrying behavior, drug use, and gang membership.
The mean age of respondents was 15.7 years. Forty-one male and 12 female respondents had owned a gun. Eighty-four percent of gun carriers acquired their first gun before the age of 15 years; more than half received their first gun passively, without any specific plan to do so. Adolescents who purposefully obtained their first handgun were more likely to become frequent or constant carriers. Forty percent felt safer and 40% said they felt more energized, excited, or powerful while carrying a gun. However, 34% reported increased anxiety about getting caught. Almost all stated that guns are readily available from a wide range of sources.
Knowledge of the developmental patterns of gun carrying by delinquent adolescents could be useful in formulating effective strategies to reduce firearm violence.
了解少年犯获取枪支的方式、时间、地点及原因。
在获得知情同意后，我们于1995年6月至11月对63名年龄在13至18岁的少年犯进行了半结构化访谈，这些少年犯均被关押在佐治亚州亚特兰大市的一个拘留中心，样本为便利抽样。
亚特兰大市的五个拘留中心。
手枪获取和使用的频率、首次获取手枪的年龄和方式、携带枪支时的感受、持枪行为的发展、吸毒情况及帮派成员身份。
受访者的平均年龄为15.7岁。41名男性和12名女性受访者拥有枪支。84%的持枪者在15岁之前获得了第一支枪；超过一半的人是被动获得第一支枪的，事先没有任何具体计划。有目的地获取第一支手枪的青少年更有可能频繁或经常携带枪支。40%的人觉得携带枪支时更安全，40%的人表示感觉更有活力、兴奋或强大。然而，34%的人报告说担心被抓的焦虑感增加。几乎所有人都表示，枪支很容易从各种渠道获得。
了解违法青少年持枪行为的发展模式可能有助于制定有效的策略来减少枪支暴力。
