Gun possession and legal frameworks

Gun possession refers to the act of private ownership of the gun by the citizens of any nation across the globe. The act of gun possession might be legal or illegal in accordance with demonstration or illustration of the laws within the legal system. There are various reasons as to why individuals own guns in their residential homes. One of the alleged reasons for the private ownership of the guns by the citizens is the need for protection. Despite this aspect, gun ownership results to intended and unintended results thus affecting the development and growth of the society. Gun possession is an important aspect of the study based on the relevant statistics and facts within the context of the United States. Based on a research conducted in 2010, about 40-45% (households) own a gun, 30-34% (adults) possesses firearms, and 17-19% (adults) owns a handgun (Agresti & Smith, 2010). These statistics are alarming in relation to the needs and obligation to enhance the security of the United States and its citizens.

In the study of gun possession, this research paper will focus on the factors contributing to the gun ownership or possession in the context of the United States. This will enhance the understanding of the phenomena through critical evaluation of the relevant factors towards the development of the modern trend in relation to gun ownership. The focus is to understand how three critical factors: age, gender, and income affect gun ownership in the society. It is also essential to understand the pros and cons of gun ownership to the state and the citizens. This will contribute to the enhancement of the body of knowledge based on the previous works and frameworks on the same topic. Gun possession in the United States is affected by age, gender, and income in the context of the modern society.

Literature Review

Gun possession is an essential and vital topic in the modern society. This is because of the stake in the need to enhance the security of the citizens and nations in context. Several research studies focus on the study of the concept of gun possession in the context of the United States. The constitution of the United States allows citizens to own a gun for the purposes of self-protection in their residential homes. This aspect contrary to the expectations contributes towards the increase on the number of criminal cases in the context of the United States. Researchers in the past have tried to examine and evaluate reasons behind the developments in the aspect of gun possession and control in the context of the society.

Age

An example of the previous research studies on the gun possession topic is the examination of competency issues in gun ownership by older adults. Greene, Bornstein, and Dietrich contributed to the realization of the goals and objectives of this research through its effective and efficient completion. Greene et al. (2007) research study focuses on the exploration of the possible risks in association with the gun ownership by the older adults. The article also focuses on the examination and evaluation of the available regulations on who has the authority to own a gun within the context of the United States with the main dependent variable as age. This article indicates that there are various regulations in place to guide and offer maximum direction to the concept of gun ownership in the United States.

The authority and citizens must adhere to such regulations in order to own a gun in the United States. Greene et al., (2007) article notes that the concept of gun ownership in the United States is growing at a faster rate among the older adults than in any other group within the segmentation of the society. This indicates that there are various cases of gun ownership among the older population in the United States. The article also note that the increase in the gun ownership trend associates with the deterioration of the older adults in relation to their functional and cognitive impairments. In this research, the authors note on the need to implement or extend the existing gun ownership regulations to minimize the risk of gun possession by the older population. According to this article, the most vital competency threat in relation to gun ownership by the older adults in the United States is the act of cognitive and functional ability loss. This requires the adoption and implementation of accurate and strict regulations of gun ownership among the older population with the aim of reducing the risks of mishandling the weapon.

Income

Another essential study in understanding the concept of gun ownership in the United States focuses on the examination of the risky firearms behavior among the low-income families. Vacha and McLaughlin executed this research with the aim of examining the impact of poverty, fear of crime, and crime victimization in relation to keeping and storing of the firearms. Vacha & McLaughlin (2004) focus on the evaluation of the aspect of possession and storage of guns among the low-income urban families with at least one child within the age bracket of 8 to 12 years old. In order to execute this research effectively and efficiently, the researchers focused on the administration of the survey to parents thus supplementing the records from discussion groups of children between the stated age brackets. According to this research, it is essential to note that middle-class parents are twice as likely to possess guns in their residential homes, but less likely to store them loaded or unlocked. Vacha & McLaughlin (2004) also found that there are high rates of victimization, fear of crime, self-protective behavior, and exposure to attacks and threats in the aspect of keeping guns for the purposes of protection and engagement in risky gun behavior within the residential homes.

Gender

Another vital research study in relation to the concept of gun possession in the United States focuses on the comparison of reports between adolescents and their parents on the aspect of keeping guns at home. Sorenson and Cook executed this research study with the aim of identifying the differences in the perspectives of the two groups. Sorenson & Cook (2008) article notes that firearms are the main contributors to the cause of mortality among adolescents. This article also notes that in most cases, adolescents use firearms from their homes to harm themselves and others. The research focused on the administration of the survey to a population of about 5704 adolescents and their parents with the aim of examining gun possession and comparison of the responses. The article notes that the amount of agreement and disagreement in the execution of this study was relevant to the composition and gender of the participants. For instance, in case of male participants in the household of single mothers, 64% of the parents indicated that there was no gun their residential homes.

Summary

In the above articles, the focus of discussion is the aspect of gun possession and relevant influences within the context of the United States. The articles focus on the demonstration and illustration of the influence of the three dependent variables: income, age, and gender in relation to the concept of gun ownership. According to the articles, it is essential to note that age, gender, and income have unique influences on the aspect of gun ownership. It is also essential to note that gun ownership focuses on the enhancement of protection of the citizens in their residential homes. In the process of enhancing this security and protection, gun ownership has its relevant unintended outcomes such as increase in the rate of crime, crime victimization, and exposure of attacks or threats among the gun owners in the United States.

Hypotheses

In the completion of this research exercise, three critical hypotheses were tested in relation to the dependent variables: age, gender, income. The first hypothesis in the achievement of the goals and objectives of the research was H1: there is high rate of gun ownership among the middle-age group in the United States. In order to examine or evaluate this hypothesis, the study focused on the application of three critical study groups: young, middle age, and old.

The second hypothesis in the examination of the subject of gun possession or ownership was H2: male gender records higher rates of gun ownership in comparison to their female counterparts in the United States. In order to examine this hypothesis effectively and efficiently, the focus of the study was on the administration of questionnaires in the form of surveys to the male and female members of the society.

The third hypothesis in the evaluation of the research question concerning gun possession was H3: there is high rate of gun ownership among the rich individuals in the United States. In the examination and confirmation of this hypothesis, the focus was on three critical groups: poor, rich, and middle class. These hypotheses were essential in the provision of adequate and appropriate direction in the execution of the research. This was also vital for the realization of the objectives and mission of the research exercise.

Method

Participants

In the examination of the aspect of gun ownership, the research adopted the concept of qualitative research method. This is because the study focuses on the examination of social problem in the United States. Data was collected through administration of the questions to approximately 4901 participants.

Materials

The main aim of the process was to adopt an effective and accurate comparison between the research hypotheses and the available data. This indicates that the study's focus was on the determination of correlation between the dependent variables: age, gender, and income and independent variable: gun possession in the United States. Research questions were formulated in accordance with the three hypotheses in order to achieve accurate and reliable data vital for quality and effective conclusion.

Procedure

In order to analyze the available data, the data was integrated into Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). This was essential in the achievement of the accurate and credible confirmation of the three hypotheses in relation to the completion of the research exercise. The analysis was vital in the determination of the correlation between the dependent variables: age, gender, and income and the independent variable: gun possession in the United States. The results were then discussed effectively and efficiently for the development of a concrete conclusion.

Results

The findings or results of this research exercise were diverse and revealing in that they were relevant to the confirmation of the three critical hypotheses. The findings of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) in relation to the research questions and participants were as follows: Participants were asked to indicate whether they had guns in their homes. According to the results, about 394 said yes while 839 said no to the question. This was reflected by 65.8% for those who did not have guns in their homes while 30.9 had guns in their residential homes.

The first hypothesis was H1: there is high rate of gun ownership among the middle-age group in the United States. In the determination of this hypothesis, dependent variable (age) was measured in the context of gun possession. According to the result, about 25.4% of the young category agreed to own guns in the homes. The same result revealed that 39.1% of the middle age participants had guns in the homes. About 35.5% of the old group had guns in the homes. According to the Chi-Square Tests, it is essential to accept the null hypothesis.

The second hypothesis in the execution of this research was H2: male gender records higher rates of gun ownership in comparison to their female counterparts in the United States. According to the findings about 55.8% of the male had guns in their homes compared to 44.2 female participants. In relation to the Chi-square test, the minimum expected value is 19.04%. This indicates acceptance of the null hypothesis.

The third hypothesis in the completion of this research was H3: there is high rate of gun ownership among the rich individuals in the United States. According to the results focusing on the poor, middle class, and the rich, the percentages were 33.2, 9.4, and 57.4 for the 3 categories respectively. The minimum expected value according to the chi-square test was 4.58. This is a reflection of acceptance of the null hypothesis.

Discussion

There results indicate variation of implications to the confirmation of the hypotheses thus realization of effective and proportionate correlation between the dependent variables and independent variable. In answering to the question of gun ownership, majority of the participants indicated that they do not own guns in their residential homes. Approximately 30% of the participants noted that they own guns at home. This minor percentage results because of various projected reasons. One of the essential reasons for this outcome is the overwhelming risks such as increase in victimization, crime fear, and exposure of threats and attacks to the gun owners within the society. Another vital explanation for the massive percentage of individuals who claim not to own gun is increased faith in the law enforcement agencies in the enhancement of the security and protection of the citizens (Branas et al., 2009). Another critical explanation is the essence of strict regulations determining individuals with the authority or permission to own guns at their residential homes. These factors would explain why majority of the population chooses not to own guns in their residential homes in the context of the United States.