In light of recent horrific tragedies, like the Pulse Nightclub massacre, gun rights will again become a highly-contested, highly-controversial topic for debate. On July 15, 2014, the Pew Research Center released data from an American Trends Panel survey. The data was collected between April 29th and May 27th from 3,243 American adults. Out of the 3,243 individuals surveyed, 1,196 reported (34%) that they or someone in their household owned a gun, pistol, or rifle.

 

Explore a further explanation of the survey’s findings on gun owners below.

 

Geographic Location

Evidently, the survey’s findings challenge the conventional belief that guns are far more prevalent in the South. 38% of Southerners reported that they have a gun at home, while 35% of Midwesterners and 34% of those from the West reported the same. The Northeast (27%) seems to be the exception.

Gender

Out of the total group surveyed, 34% stated that they have a gun at home. 38% of those individuals were male and 31% were female, leading to an overall average of 34%.

 

Race/Ethnicity

White Americans are more than twice as likely to have firearms in their homes when compared to Black Americans and Hispanic Americans.

 

Age

This finding supports a longstanding belief that older Americans are more likely to have guns in their households than their younger counterparts.

 

Environment

Additionally, this survey supports another longstanding belief that Americans who live in rural environments are more likely to have guns than Americans who live in suburban or urban environments.

 

Political Ideology and Party

Unsurprisingly, Republicans are twice as likely as Democrats to live in a gun-owning household. Similarly, conservatives are almost twice as likely as liberals to be a member of a gun-owning household.

 

Children

About a third (35%) of all Americans with children under 18 have a gun in their household. Interestingly, this figure is nearly identical to the share of Americans without children at home. Thus, Americans with children in their home are just as likely as other Americans to have a gun.

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