Newswise — Think you know about guns? A Wichita State researcher is inviting the public to test their gun knowledge through an online survey of firearms and firearm safety.
The information gleaned from the survey will lead to more effective strategies for preventing accidents caused by inappropriate firearm safety practices, says Joel Suss, of WSU's Applied Cognition and Expertise Lab and assistant professor in the Human Factors program.
According to the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (CDC), in 2014 there were 15,928 nonfatal, unintentional firearm-related injuries in the United States.
Yet there has been little research on the relationship between firearm owners' perceived knowledge of firearms and their ability to tell whether or not a firearm is loaded.
Shedding light on this relationship could help researchers design better firearms safety training programs and inform the design of firearms.
The anonymous survey is open to people with all levels of firearms knowledge and experience. It's unique, Suss says, because much of the survey is video-based and designed to directly assess people's ability to tell whether or not a firearm is loaded.
Current and prospective firearm owners who are familiar with firearms may assume that they "know guns" and follow good safety practices. The survey offers people the ability to test their knowledge in an objective manner. Even experienced firearm users have found that the survey helped them identify areas where their knowledge of firearms functioning could be improved.
Goals of the survey include:
- To examine how gun ownership, gun carry and prior experience with firearms is related to performance on an objective test of firearms safety and functioning.
- To examine how people's self-assessed knowledge of firearms safety and functioning is related to their performance.
- To understand the types of safety breaches – such as accidental discharge – people have experienced and the extent to which deficiencies in knowledge of firearms safety and functioning play a role in those accidents.
- To develop and validate a test of firearms safety and functioning.
- To develop training that can improve people's understanding of firearm safety and functioning.
To participate in the firearms survey, go to http://tinyurl.com/GunResearch.
# # # # #Contact: Joel Suss, 316-978-3821 or [email protected].
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