P3.L222: Colorado Caregivers’ Perceptions of Firearm Safety and Youth Suicide

Background: In the US, 4.6 million households with youth contain loaded and unlocked firearms.1 Household firearms, particularly unsecured household firearms, are associated with increased risk of youth suicide.2,3 This study examined perceptions of firearm risk and suicide among caregivers with and without household firearms.

Methods: The Colorado Firearm Injury Prevention Survey was administered by the Ipsos survey firm online in English and Spanish from April-May 2023. Of 1,520 adults completing the survey, we included 512 caregivers (children < 18 years in the household). Survey questions assessed firearm storage, perceptions of firearm-related risks, and concerns about suicide among youth. Likert scales were dichotomized to improve interpretability. We estimated weighted prevalences and 95% confidence intervals (CI), and compared differences between households using weighted chi-square tests. Poststratification weights were applied to make findings representative of Colorado adults. The study was approved by the Colorado Multiple Institutional Review Board.

Results: Colorado caregivers were primarily female (56.4%), aged 25-54 (77.4%), White (87.8%), non-Hispanic (74.9%), and had a child ≤12 years at home (79.3%). Nearly half (45.5%) reported a firearm in the home (Table 1). Among all caregivers, 23.7% correctly identified suicide as the leading cause of firearm death in Colorado, with no difference between groups. Caregivers with household firearms were more likely to believe a firearm in the home made them safer (52.2% vs 22.4%, p< 0.001) and that secure storage reduced the risk of firearm injury. They were less likely to believe that suicide can be prevented (47.8% vs 68.9%p < 0.001), or that temporary removal of firearms decreases risk of firearm injury or death (59.6% vs 77.7%, p< 0.001). Two thirds of caregivers were concerned about youth suicide in their community. Caregivers with household firearms were less likely to be concerned about suicide among youth within their own family (28.1% vs 38.5%, p=0.013) (Table 2).

Conclusion: Less than a quarter of caregivers in Colorado recognized suicide as the leading cause of firearm death in their state. There was more concern for youth suicide in the community than in the family; caregivers with firearms were less concerned about youth suicide in their family than those without. This risk is compounded by a belief that suicide is not preventable and that strategies to mitigate the risk of suicide are not effective.
This study has several limitations. Respondents were all in Colorado; results may not be generalizable. Responses may have been impacted by non-response or social desirability bias. The study did not include context that may affect violence risk (ex. neighborhood crime).
Our finding that firearm owners believe that secure firearm storage is protective against firearm injury is a promising messaging strategy. Future research should explore effectiveness of preventive messaging in improving perceptions around household firearms and suicide risk.