Attitudes toward Concealed Carry of Firearms on Campus: A Systematic Review of the Literature

ABSTRACT

Gun control is a highly debated and divisive social issue. In recent years, this issue has been thrust into the academic arena with the advent of campus carry legislation and policies. Researchers have taken up the task of attempting to better understand the attitudes of those most affected by campus carry legislation – the campus community. The current project is a systematic review to synthesize 17 existing empirical studies regarding the attitudes of campus carry. Specifically, all published studies that examine the extent to which students and faculty/staff support or oppose campus carry and the factors underlying their attitudes were considered in the narrative review. Findings indicate that while a majority of individuals in the campus community are opposed to campus carry, the studies displayed a considerable degree of variation in campus carry attitudes based upon demographic variables, gun ownership, and fear of campus crime. With a thorough review of the literature and discussion of implications, a clear path for future inquiry and policymaking are presented.

KEYWORDS:

• Campus carry policies
• concealed carry of firearms on campus
• school safety
• systematic review

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Matthew R. Hassett

Dr. Matthew R. Hassett is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice at The University of North Carolina at Pembroke. He has recently published works on the topics of immigration and crime rates, as well as the impact of federal legislation on correctional policies in the United States. His primary research interests include criminal justice policy, criminological theory, and pedagogical practices.

Bitna Kim

Dr. Bitna Kim is a Professor in the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice and Co-director of the Center for Research in Criminology at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP). Specific areas of interest include a systemic review and meta-analysis of the risk factors and intervention/programs, multi-agency partnerships, and international/comparative criminology and criminal justice. She has published widely, including recent articles in Crime and Delinquency, Journal of Criminal Justice, Trauma, Violence & Abuse, Police Quarterly, Policing, Policing and Society, Federal Probation, Prison Journal, Criminal Justice and Behavior, Deviant behavior, Asian Journal of Criminology, Women & Criminal Justice, and Journal of Criminal Justice Education.

Chunghyeon Seo

Mr. Chunghyeon Seo is a Teaching Associate and Doctoral Candidate in the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. His primary research interests include policing, comparative criminal justice, school violence, crime prevention, big data analysis, and systematic reviews and meta-analysis.