Report: Mental Health and Gun Control in the United States of America

This report delves into the urgent issue of gun control in the United States, highlighting the nation's high rate of gun violence and its connection to mental health. It explores the causes of gun violence, including mass shootings, suicides, and homicides, and examines the role of firearm ownership and the prevalence of mental illness. The report discusses the ongoing debate surrounding the relationship between mental health and gun violence, presenting arguments from various perspectives. It also offers recommendations for addressing the problem, such as implementing stringent background checks, enacting effective gun control laws, promoting self-control, improving treatment for mentally ill individuals, expanding treatment facilities, and conducting surveys to understand public perceptions. The report emphasizes the need for comprehensive measures to prevent further gun violence and mass shootings in the US.

Running head: MENTAL HEALTH AND GUN CONTROL IN AMERICA
MENTAL HEALTH AND GUN CONTROL IN AMERICA
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author note

1
CONCLUSION FROM THE REPORT
The urgency of solving the problem of gun control has become an issue of paramount
importance in case of the United States. In the wake of the recent killings and the incessant
gun attacks which have happened across United States, gun control has become the need of
the hour. No other country comes close to United States in terms of gun violence (Kangas &
Calvert, 2014). Mental health is another which has come to the limelight. The innate
connection between gun violence and mental sanity has long been debated. Recently due to
the increased rate of attacks of gun violence, the correlation between gun violence and mental
sanity has become a raring issue. This paper tends to focus on the issues of mental health and
gun control in the United States of America and a conclusion regarding the same.

2
Gun violence refers to the various kinds of violence which are committed by the use of
firearms such as guns. It is the leading cause of deaths in the US.
The causes of gun violence in the US are due to various reasons. These mass
shootings are going to happen again and again as a cycle is followed here. Mass shootings,
media uproar, marches and prayer meetings, debates but nothing could budge the Congress
and in each attack this pattern follows.
According to Goss (2015), United States is the biggest perpetrator in terms of gun
violence amongst all the developed nations and also it carries the most amounts of guns from
all other developed countries of the world. US reports the highest number of gun related
deaths every year. Here gun deaths take place majorly in three ways; suicides, accidents,
mass shootings and homicides (Hemenway & Miller, 2013). Mass shootings and suicides
form the majority of these killings. US rank the highest in case of gun related deaths each
year and only Israel is behind it in this regard. The National Survey of the Private Ownership
of Firearms has stated the fact that Adults in US own approximately 192 million guns which
are in proper working condition (Statistics behind US violence, 2018). This tells an average of
one gun per adult. Guns remain a major contributor of premature deaths and injuries to this
country till date. Approximately 4.5 million new guns are sold every year in the US. The
aggregate amount of gun sales can reach a staggering 9.5 million a year which is genuinely a
grave concern for the country and more alarming is the fact that almost half of them are
unregulated.
Mental health and sanity is one of the most important traits of human development.
Recent studies have suggested that there exists a close connection between mental illness and
gun violence. Adolescent is a tender age and exposure to significant amount of violence at
this age results in devastating consequences for these children in the future (Slovac, 2002).

3
Mental well being needs special attention in this regard. Failure to address this is a significant
contributor to gun violence and other firearm related tragedies. Social stigma and shame also
results in mental illness which can lead to gun and other related deaths and tragedies (Nardi,
2015). There are other experts who vouch for the fact that there is very little connection
between gun violence and mental illness. Politicians including Republicans and Democrats
have blamed mental illness of perpetrators for these ghastly crimes for a very long time..
Proper ways of solving the issue of mental illness to counter gun violence is still underway
and research experts have suggested that removal of family and peer stigma should be done at
the basic level. This can provide a substantial solution to this mess created by gun violence.
The debates of gun violence and mental sanity have always been brought in the wake
of mass shootings and other serious gun tragedy cases in both the national and international
arena. Constant media scrutiny reinforces the connection between mental insanity and gun
violence and this lingering debate prevents Congress from passing a concrete law in this
regard. It has been proven by several studies that there exists a strong connection between
mental illness and gun violence. According to Rocque (2018), at least 59% of the 185 public
mass shootings that happened in the US from the year 1900 to 2017 were carried out by
people having mental disorders and illness.
Connection between mental sanity and such gun violence were identified by another
study that identified three major issues responsible for the problem, namely, the stigma
associated with mental illness, institutional barriers in limiting healthcare access and lack of
evidence-based treatments. This also brings out a major fact that due to the shame and social
stigma associated with mentally ill people, coupled with the lack of treatment form quality
hospitals and doctors puts these patients into serious risk of undertaking gun and other kind
of violence. Moreover the issue of providing the mental illness information into databases
also leads to social stigmas and prevents these patients from seeking treatment.

4
Recommendation:
The need of the hour is the prevention of further gun violence and mass shootings in
the US. The various ways it can happen are:
 Background checks: Application of stringent background checks and introduction of
various other tests in this regard. Various security checks and mental sanity checks
should be examined before purchase of firearms.
 Effective laws: Effective laws should be implemented at the earliest. As stated in the
report, a study had revealed that the US Congress had received huge sums of
donations from firearm legislators. Moreover, permanent spike in stricter laws is
necessary. Reducing of such donations will help in lowering of pro gun laws and
stricter brought in not only on a national scale but also in both the local and as well as
the state level will help a long way in curbing this gun menace. The existing federal
laws only restrict buying of guns under criteria related to domestic-violence cases,
felony convictions, and adishonorable discharge; there is a need to put stringent
control on the widespread selling of guns, to combat gun violence.
 Self control: The Wolpert and Gimpel report of 1998 has stated a study that
examined attitudes of the public towards gun control with the aim of determining
different policy preferences exhibited by gun owners. Demographic, symbolic and
self-interest factors were thought to be instrumental in the attainment of individual
goals. Crime victims and gun owners were identified as major individuals having a
personal stake in this issue. The study emphasized on the fact that gun owners most
often display their personal stake in restrictions on gun usage. On examination, the
results indicated failure of self-interest in influencing policy attitudes. Furthermore, it
identified gun control as policies that make it easier for gun owners to place the
responsibility of their safety and wellbeing on the government. Moreover, the results

5
also showed that failure of gun control legislation to polarize public on the basis of
ideological grounds makes self-control very effective. Thus, self-control can work
effectively in reducing gun violence
 Treatment of mentally ill patients: A study has revealed that mentally ill people are
at an increased susceptibility of developing the risk of violence. Moreover, disorders
such as depression were found to increase suicidal tendencies that directly contribute
to more than 50% gun deaths in the USA. In such a serious scenario, treatment of
mentally ill patients has become very important. The sale of guns to these patients
should also be banned.
 Expansion of treatment facilities: Connection of mental health and gun violence
was identified by another study that recognized three events responsible for the
problem namely, the stigma associated with mental disorders, institutional barriers in
limiting healthcare access and lack of evidence-based treatments. The study also
revealed that there are inadequate treatment facilities available for psychiatric illness,
which worsens the symptoms and increases the risk associated with gun violence.
 Conducting surveys and research: There is also a need to conduct surveys and
opinion polls to understand the perceptions of the public in the context of gun control
because still 47% Americans believe that carrying arms is their fundamental right.
Consequently it is also used unethically (Jacobs, 2015). Therefore such research and
surveys will create provisions for building public confidence and support.

6
References:
Goss, K. A. (2015). Defying the odds on gun regulation: The passage of bipartisan mental
health laws across the states. American journal of Orthopsychiatry, 85(3), 203.
Hemenway, D., & Miller, M. (2013). Public health approach to the prevention of gun
violence. N Engl J Med, 368(21), 2033-2035.
Jacobs, J. B. (2015). Why Ban Assault Weapons. Cardozo L. Rev., 37, 681.
Kangas, J. L., & Calvert, J. D. (2014). Ethical issues in mental health background checks for
firearm ownership. Professional psychology: research and practice, 45(1), 76.
Nardi, D. (2015). Decreasing Risk in the for Mass Shootings United States. Journal of
psychosocial nursing and mental health services, 53(12), 3-5.
Rocque, G. (2018). Actually, there is a clear link between mass shootings and mental
illness. latimes.com. Retrieved 15 March 2018, from
http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-duwe-rocque-mass-shootings-
mental-illness-20180223-story.html
Slovak, K. (2002). Gun violence and children: Factors related to exposure and trauma. Health
& Social Work, 27(2), 104-112.
Wolpert, R. M., & Gimpel, J. G. (1998). Self-interest, symbolic politics, and public attitudes
toward gun control. Political Behavior, 20(3), 241-262.