Running head: ANALYSIS OF GUN VIOLENCE

ANALYSIS OF GUN VIOLENCE

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PHL 1010, Critical Thinking 3

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Analysis of Gun Violence

Gun violence is one of the most urgent and complex social problems. It is a multi-

faceted problem that requires multifaceted solutions supported by evidence. In the United States,

the majority of homicides are committed with firearms, particularly handguns. The National

Crime Victimization Survey further indicates that in 2011, 467,321 persons were victims of

firearm crimes.

In addition, the FBI report shows that in that same year, 21 percent of aggravated assaults

and 68 percent of murders were committed with a firearm (National Institute of Justice, 2013).

The following is an analysis of gun violence that seeks to derive answers from questions related

to three domains of thinking.

Evaluate the causes of Gun violence

Evaluating the factors that lead to gun violence, especially among the youth greatly help

to establish effective intervention measures and to formulate analysis questions that help draw

insight about the issue. One of the factors that contribute to gun violence is mass media such as

violent movies and video games.

Today, children are highly exposed to violence through the media. Unfortunately, parents

barely take interest in what their children are watching, mainly because they are always working.

Therefore, they rarely spend time with children, who gradually adopt the behaviors expressed in

the media.

Another factor leading to gun violence is mental illness (PoliceOne, 2013). Often, some

people who commit crimes with firearms, especially those that engage in mass shootings, suffer

from severe mental illness. Due to limited access to mental health care, perpetrators of gun
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violence may not receive the required medical attention. Therefore, they become helpless and

this increases the risk of committing crimes with firearms.

The above answer precisely explains the root cause of gun violence. The answer is

precise enough, since it gives the specific causes of gun violence, hence giving insight into the

issues that should be assessed when seeking for intervention strategies. The above is also a

question of fact, since it seeks to explore facts about the causes of gun violence. The

aforementioned factors have been verified through empirical research.

What are the negative effects of Gun Violence?

Gun violence poses a threat to the society and has detrimental effects on both the

perpetrator and the victim. For instance, exposure to gun violence leads to emotional trauma.

Research studies have shown that children who are exposed to gun violence experience

emotional problems such as anger, post-traumatic stress, and withdrawal. These problems may

worsen if a child is actively involved in gun violence (Garbarino, Bradshaw, & Vorrasi, 2002).

For example, a study that assesses third to eighth graders in a rural setting showed that

children and youth who witness at least one case of gun violence reported high aggression levels

and were more likely to engage in other forms of violence. This shows that the youth tend to

disregard the disabling effects of violence, hence increasing the chances of using violence as a

means of expressing emotions, or solving problems (Garbrino et al., 2002).

Besides emotional problems, exposure to gun violence can also have a negative impact

on the overall development of children. For instance, Gabrino et al. (2002), explain that children

who live in communities that are prone to gun violence are highly susceptible to developmental

issues, resulting to low cognitive performance and poor achievement in school. In addition, gun
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violence can lead to problems such as sleeplessness, anxiety, depression, intrusive thoughts, and

antisocial behavior (Garbrino et al., 2002).

The above answer seeks to answer the question in depth. It explores the issue of gun

violence by digging into the effects of gun violence. Therefore, the answer applies the

intellectual standard of depth. The question is posed in a more judgmental manner, since it

criticizes the issue of gun violence, by expressing the negative impact of the problem. This

question helps to comprehend the complexity of the social problem, thus, it indicates the need for

urgent and long-lasting solutions.

What Are The Intervention Strategies of Gun Violence? Formulate Two

Intervention Strategies

It is evident that gun violence has detrimental effects on the victims and the community

at large. Therefore, it is crucial that relevant intervention strategies are established, in order to

deal with the problem in question. One of the strategies that can help curb the problem of gun

violence is by reducing unsupervised exposure to guns.This strategy should focus on diverting

the attention of the youth and children from guns. It should involve parents, who are required to

supervise their children by ensuring that they are not exposed to firearms.

The second strategy involves the strengthening of law enforcement. This intervention

strategy should involve the law enforcement bodies, whereby they involve community leaders in

the establishment of community-based policies. This approach is likely to strengthen the

collaboration between the citizens and law enforcement bodies such as the police, hence

reducing crime levels.

In conclusion, gun violence is a prevalent and disabling social problem that is caused by

various factors, whereby some of the root causes can be mitigated. This can help prevent the far-
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reaching consequences caused by the problem. In order to prevent gun violence, a number of

intervention strategies should be established. From the above analysis, I have learned that gun

violence is one of the most lethal social problems. However, this does not imply that the problem

cannot be solved, since there exists a solution to every problem.

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References

Garbarino, J., Bradshaw, C.P., & Vorrasi, J.A. (2002). Mitigating the Effects of Gun Violence

on Children and Youth. The Future of Children, 12(2), 73-85. Retrieved from

http://www.futureofchildren.org/futureofchildren/publications/docs/12_02_05.pdf

National Institute of Justice. (2013). Gun violence. Retrieved from

http://www.nij.gov/topics/crime/gun-violence/pages/welcome.aspx

PoliceOne. (2013). P1 Gun Control Survey: Top 10 reasons for gun violence. Retrieved from

https://www.policeone.com/Gun-Legislation-Law-Enforcement/articles/6253478-P1-

Gun-Control-Survey-Top-10-reasons-for-gun-violence/