PHILADELPHIA (Juny 24, 2025) – A new Penn Nursing study led by Jungwon Min, PhD, MS , Research Professor and Director of the BECCA Lab, uncovers a significant association between neighborhood firearm violence exposure, involvement in fighting, and adolescents' perceived ability to obtain a firearm outside the home. The research is available in the latest issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
The study, Neighborhood Firearm Violence, Psychosocial Risks, and Youth Firearm Perception , highlights that adolescents living in neighborhoods with higher rates of firearm violence are more likely to perceive firearms as accessible outside the home, even if they do not have firearms at home. Fighting behavior was found to mediate 32% of the relationship between neighborhood firearm violence and perceived outside-home firearm availability, pointing to the layered risks faced by youth in high-violence settings.
"Our findings underscore the urgent need for interventions that address youth firearm access not just within the home, but also in community contexts," said Min. "Both structural and individual-level factors—like neighborhood violence and fighting behavior—shape how youth perceive firearm availability. The emergency department, where many of these youth are seen, is a crucial setting for early identification and intervention."
The cross-sectional study analyzed 23,334 emergency department visits by youth aged 14-18 years who completed behavioral health screenings between 2013 and 2024. Researchers linked self-reported data on perceived firearm availability and psychosocial risks to police-reported shootings and the Child Opportunity Index at the census tract level.
This research emphasizes that perceived firearm availability is not solely determined by neighborhood disadvantage but is significantly influenced by individual behaviors like fighting. The study suggests that ED-based screening for perceived firearm availability could be a vital step in preventing youth firearm carriage and future violence.
Co-authors include Vicky Tam, MA, Stephanie Mayne, PhD, MHS, Polina Krass, MD, and Joel A. Fein, MD, MPH. This project was supported by Clinical Futures, a Research Center of Emphasis at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.
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