Firearms, Violence, and Youth in California, Illinois, Louisiana, and New Jersey, 1991 (ICPSR 6484)

Time Period(s) View help for Time Period(s)

Date of Collection View help for Date of Collection

Data Collection Notes View help for Data Collection Notes

Hide

Study Purpose View help for Study Purpose

The increase in violence committed by and against juveniles has come more and more to define the public's image of the crime problem and the larger political debate over anti-crime policy. While evidence documenting the extent of youth violence is abundant, the available research evidence dealing with juveniles, guns, and violence has left many important questions unanswered, for which this data collection attempts to provide information. Concerning violence on the streets, how many street juveniles, of what description, own, carry, or use firearms on a routine basis? Where and how are their firearms obtained? What empirical relationships can be discerned between firearms behaviors and involvement in crime, gangs, or the drug trade? Concerning juvenile violence in the schools, how prevalent is gun ownership, carrying, and use among students in inner-city schools? Who are the inner-city victims of youthful gun violence? Regarding current beliefs about gangs, drugs, and guns, how much is true and how much is modern urban myth? If guns are indeed prevalent among youth, whether they are gang members or not, what kinds of guns do the youths possess? Where and how do juveniles obtain their firearms, how easily, and at what cost?

Study Design View help for Study Design

Efforts were concentrated on incarcerated (criminally active) juveniles and students in inner-city high schools, since these youths are popularly considered to engage in and experience violence (especially gun-related violence), to belong to urban street gangs, and to participate in the drug trafficking thought to lead to excessive gun violence. Self-administered questionnaires were completed by 835 male inmates in six correctional facilities and 1,663 male and female students from ten inner-city high schools in the United States. Data collection took place during January through April of 1991. Respondents were told that the research sought information about what they knew about guns in their neighborhoods and peer groups, as well as information about their personal knowledge and experience. In all cases, students and inmates were assured that their participation in the study was voluntary and anonymous. Respondents were also asked to sign a form attesting that they understood the subject of the study and that their participation was entirely voluntary. For the inmate survey, administrators announced the study to wards in each of the smaller facilities' dormitories and to those in about half of the larger facilities' dormitories. To maximize response rates, inducements of five dollars were offered to the inmates, Spanish-language versions of the questionnaire were provided to inmates who preferred them, and personal interviews were conducted with inmates whose reading skills were less than sufficient to complete the questionnaire on their own. In all cases, groups of 10 to 20 inmates completed the questionnaire at a time. Average completion time for the survey was less than one hour. In some schools, the survey was administered to groups of 20 to 30 students at a time. In others, the survey was given to larger assemblies of 100 to 200 students. In four schools, principals permitted inducements of five dollars to be offered to the students to participate in the study. As with the inmate survey, a Spanish-language version of the questionnaire was provided to students who preferred it.

Sample View help for Sample

The site selection strategy specifically targeted areas in which gun-related activities were considered relatively extensive. Although technically not generalizable, the sites were also not to deviate obviously or seriously from most sites. To sample criminally active youth, inmates in the chosen states' major juvenile corrections facilities were sought. To sample inner-city students, high school students (ninth- through twelfth-graders) in large public schools in major cities near the correctional facilities were targeted.

Universe View help for Universe

Male youths incarcerated in six juvenile corrections facilities in California, Illinois, New Jersey, and Louisiana, and male and female students attending public schools proximate to the six correctional facilities.

Unit(s) of Observation View help for Unit(s) of Observation

Data Source View help for Data Source

Data Type(s) View help for Data Type(s)

Description of Variables View help for Description of Variables

The questionnaires covered roughly the same core topics for both inmates and students. Items included questions on sociodemographic characteristics, school experiences, gun ownership, gun use for several types of firearms, gun acquisition patterns, gun-carrying habits, use of other weapons, gang membership and gang activities, self-reported criminal histories, victimization patterns, drug use, alcohol use, and attitudes concerning guns, crime, and violence. In both questionnaires, the majority of the items covered firearms knowledge, acquisition, and use. The remaining items in the inmate survey primarily covered criminal behavior and, secondarily, victimization histories. In the student survey, these priorities were reversed.

Response Rates View help for Response Rates

Although exact response rates are not available, the number of inmates actually surveyed varied from 22 percent of the facilities' populations to 62 percent, with a mean of 42 percent. For the student survey, the number of students surveyed in each school ranged from 109 to 229, with a mean of 165. The percentage of the student population surveyed across schools ranged from 7 to 21 percent, with a mean of 10 percent. For both surveys, lower percentages were a function of the larger-sized facilities or schools.

Presence of Common Scales View help for Presence of Common Scales

Several Likert-type scales were used.

Hide

Original Release Date View help for Original Release Date

1996-01-22

Version History View help for Version History

Hide