Is Gun Control an Effective Means to Reduce Crime - Research Proposal Example

Research Proposal Introduction The question that this research will seek to address is “Is gun control an effective means to reduce crime?” This is an important research question because it addresses a serious and contentious topic in modern society. Due to rising crime rates due to the widespread use of guns, it has become necessary to devise a strategy to reduce the occurrence of such crimes in the country. The significance of these issues is emphasized by the fact that a number of shooting incidents, often involving high school and university students has occurred in the United States and other western societies. This is an important issue from the point of view of criminology theory because law enforcement officials often have to contend with instances of open and concealed carrying of weapons which pose an imminent security threat. The topic is likely to engage stakeholders such as special interest groups, public bodies, law enforcement officials and legislators because of the cultural and affective factors relating to gun control. Hence, the issue has significant public policy implications because it would engender aggressive debate and responses from both sides of the divide. Based on the findings of the proposed study, a relationship between gun control measures and crime rates in the country will emerge. As a result of these findings, effective legislation and policies targeting the ownership and prevalence of guns would be implemented and its impact on crime could be assessed in practicable ways. Law enforcement officials would be facilitated in controlling crime and apprehending offenders. Literature review Gun control is perceived to be helpful in reducing crime rates in society. The popularity of this view has created a situation where high crime rates result in intensified legislative efforts to institute tougher gun control laws (Moorhouse and Wanner, 2006). At the same time, most studies including those by Moorhouse and Wanner (2006), Blocher (2014), and Grillot (2011) point to the absence of evidence that statistically points to the effectiveness of gun control laws in reducing crime. The study by Grillot (2011) broadens the scope of gun control to a wider international perspective and shows that international norms for control of small arms are ineffective due to compelling arguments from proponents of gun control regulations as well as non-existent commitment at top-levels in the international arena to reduce the use of small arms. While this finding points to the ineffectiveness of gun control norms in reducing the prevalence of guns, other studies show that tighter gun control is not statistically related to less crime. A study by Moorhouse and Wanner (2006) failed to find any statistically significant relationship between stricter gun control and reduced crime in societies. In fact, the finding showed that while gun control regulates sale of firearms through authorized channels, criminals are able to bypass these channels easily to acquire possession of guns. Hence, the efforts at gun control are not only ineffective at reducing crime, but are a waste of resources. In a study on gun-related crime in schools, Kleck (2009) states that using high-profile school shooting incidents such as the Columbine school shootings as a reason to institute tougher gun control measures were actually irrelevant to reducing gun-related crime, especially those similar to school shooting incidents. In fact, Blocher (2014) indicates that the issue of gun control is less of a legislative and constitutional debate than a cultural issue with those in opposition and in favour of gun control interested in defending their own cultural values instead of addressing the issue of crimes related to guns. Moorhouse and Wanner (2006) conclude that the issue of gun control is typically raised by legislators because it appears to be a visible and direct medium of the commission of gun-related crimes. The authors allege that these efforts do not address the real issues that should be tackled to reduce crime in societies. Blocher (2014) also explains that the arguments for gun control typically raised by proponents of gun control such as increasing personal responsibility are not directly related to reducing gun-related crime. Similar views are also echoed by Kleck (2009) who states that legislative and regulatory efforts at increasing gun control in society actually have a detrimental impact on the real benefits of gun control. In addition, O’Brien et al. (2013) state that racism is one of the factors that contribute to the gun control debate thereby obfuscating the main reasons for gun control legislation in the country. This is an important finding because it points to the reasons why gun control has not yielded significant results in reducing gun-related crime despite intuitive appeal to the argument. Therefore, the failure of legislators to create realistic cause-effect relationships for gun-related crime is the main reason for the increasing crime rates despite tougher gun control. Kopel (2012) also discusses some issues which facilitate an understanding of the fact that gun control is a complex issue that could be related to crime rates in multifarious ways. Kopel (2012) also identifies a unique challenge to instituting gun control and studying its impact on crime rates. The challenge exists in the form of a growing diversity of opinions regarding gun control. In fact, he explains how gun control has traditionally been opposed by white Americans because of their apprehensions about high crime rates among Black Americans. These findings are similar to those identified by O’Brien et al. (2013). Therefore, the study of the relationship between crime rates and gun control is a challenging and complex exercise that must consider sociological as well as psychological variables. Furthermore, to address gun control in a way that is relevant to reducing crime in the country, it is important to take into account the cultural and other interests that coincide with the gun control debate. For instance, racism, poverty and other opportunities for economic progress may need to be addressed through a multi-pronged strategy. There is a need to identify whether and why these measures fail in these instances and whether potential exists to reduce crime through effective gun control. However, despite the weaknesses in the relationship between gun control and crime rates discussed by most researchers, there are those who make compelling arguments stating the a more nuanced approach to gun control instead of a tougher approach can play an effective role in bringing down crime rates and making communities safe. De Grazia (2014) explains that a “moderate gun control” policy as opposed to the present gun control policy in the United States can help balance the interests of law enforcement officials and those of gun owners with regard to gun control. Similarly, Goldberg (2012) builds an argument that links responsible gun ownership for law-abiding citizens to more effective crime control. He states that 30,000 deaths a year in America are attributed to gun use, most of which are suicides. Goldberg (2012) argues that simply increasing the waiting periods for acquiring guns could have a drastic impact on the numbers of suicide deaths due to gun use. However, Goldberg (2012) acknowledges the challenge to gun control especially the prevalence of 300 million guns in the United States and people’s obsession with invoking the Second Amendment to protect right to gun ownership. Instead, he argues for a more balanced approach to gun control where law-abiding citizens are allowed to carry concealed guns after due vetting and assessment. This is similar to the assumptions in the “moderate gun control” policy currently implemented in the United States and which has been quite ineffective in reducing crime as discussed by Blocher (2014), Moorhouse and Wanner (2006), and Gary (2009). Key Concepts The dependent variable in this research is the crime rate related to gun use. The variable would be conceptualized in the form of crime rates reported to law enforcement agencies including killings and injuries as a result of use of firearms such as pistols, revolvers, rifles and other weapons falling under the category of guns. The variable will be measured through accessing records of law enforcement agencies such as the police department in the communities under study. Data relating to number of deaths and injuries, including suicides, resulting from gun shots will be collected and used to measure the dependent variable for this study. The independent variable for this study would be the gun control measures taken in order to bring down the rate of crime in the respective communities. This variable would be conceptualized in the form of the number and severity of legislations and regulations to enforce tighter control on the prevalence and possession of guns in the community. It would be measured by obtaining information about the number of gun control measures instituted during the period under consideration from the public gazette as well as legislative and regulatory bodies in the country. The research will investigate whether a negative association exists between the independent and dependent variables identified above. The hypothesis will be ‘Increased gun control measures lead to a reduction in crime rates over time.’ Hence, it will be explored whether increasing the number and reach of gun control laws and rules, the incidence of gun-related crimes in the community decreases. References Blocher, J. (2014). Panel IV: Has the constitution fostered a pathological rights culture? The right to bear arms: Gun rights talk. Boston University Law Review, 94, 813-833. De Grazia, D. (2014). The case for moderate gun control. Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal, 24(1), 1-25. Gary, K. (2009). Mass shootings in schools: The worst possible case for gun control. American Behavioral Scientist, 52(10), 1447-1464. Goldberg, J. (2012). The case for more guns (and more gun control). The Atlantic, 310(5), 68-76. Grillot, S. R. (2011). Global gun control: Examining the consequences of competing international norms. Global Governance, 17(4), 529-555. Kopel, D. B. (2012). The great gun control war of the twentieth century—and its lessons for gun laws today. Fordham Urban Law Journal, 39, 1527-1616. O’Brien, K., Forrest, W., Lynott, D., and Daly, M. (2013). Racism, gun ownership and gun control: Biased attitudes in US whites may influence policy decision. PLoS ONE, 8(10), e77552. Moorhouse, J. C., and Wanner, B. (2006). Does gun control reduce crime or does crime increase gun control? Cato Journal, 26(1), 103-124. Read More