Nearly 20 Million Americans Have Considered Shooting Someone: Study

Roughly 19.4 million American adults — or more than 7 percent of the U.S. population — have seriously thought about shooting another person at some point in their lives, according to a stunning new study.The research, conducted by the University of Michigan and published in JAMA Network Open, provides a rare statistical look at the scope of violent ideation in the United States. “We found that 3.3% of respondents seriously thought about shooting another person in the past 12 months, which we estimated to equate to more than 8.5 million U.S. residents; the lifetime prevalence was 7.3%, or more than 19 million people,” the researchers wrote in their study.Researchers emphasized that the more than 7,000 respondents were not experiencing fleeting anger or passing frustrations, but were reporting serious thoughts of committing gun violence. Alarmingly, the data shows that a meaningful number of people took concrete steps toward acting on these impulses. An estimated 4 million adults have thought about acquiring a gun specifically to shoot someone, while roughly 1.5 million reported actually bringing a firearm to a location with the intent to shoot.The demographic breakdown aligns with historical data on firearm violence. Men were significantly more likely than women to report thoughts of shooting someone (9 percent versus 5.7 percent). Younger adults, individuals living in urban areas, and those with lower levels of education also reported higher rates.However, the survey revealed surprising disconnects in who harbors these thoughts. Most notably, gun ownership showed no meaningful connection; people who owned firearms were no more likely to consider shooting someone than non-owners. Political affiliation also played no role, with Republicans, Democrats, and Independents reporting similar rates.“Among those who seriously thought about shooting another person, the most common target was “an enemy” (51.0%) followed by someone they did not know (24.6%; eg, conflict with a stranger),” the researchers wrote. “Some targets were consistent with politically motivated violence, including a government official or employee (13.6%) and police or military (6.6%). Other common targets were family members, romantic partners, friends, and coworkers.”Despite the high numbers, the study points to crucial opportunities for preventing violence. Among those who considered shooting someone, about 20.5 percent disclosed their violent thoughts to another person. Researchers identified this disclosure as “a point of intervention,” particularly in states equipped with extreme risk protection orders—often called red flag laws—that allow authorities to temporarily remove firearms from individuals deemed a danger to themselves or others.Furthermore, nearly three in 10 people who thought about shooting someone did not currently own or have access to a gun. Because 21 percent of non-firearm owners with violent thoughts considered purchasing a weapon to carry out an attack, researchers suggest that point-of-sale interventions and waiting periods could be critical safety measures.In 2023, the U.S. recorded more than 116,000 emergency department visits for gun-related assaults and more than 16,000 firearm homicides.

Nearly 20 Million Americans Have Considered Shooting Someone: Study

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