HMN 2025: How The years 2002 to 2022 noticed a rise in teen handgun-carrying in Florida

In Florida, adolescent handgun-carrying is growing, whereas handgun-carrying at school, favorable attitudes towards handgun0carrying at school, and ease of handgun entry are reducing, in response to a research published on-line July 7 in Pediatrics.

Erin Wright-Kelly, Dr.P.H., from the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora, and colleagues assessed adjustments usually handgun-carrying, in-school carrying, favorable attitudes towards handgun-carrying at school, and ease of handgun entry amongst adolescents in Florida. The evaluation included 701,649 members within the Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey (2002 to 2022).

The researchers discovered that over time, Florida’s adolescent common handgun-carrying elevated by 65% (3.7 to six.0%), whereas handgun-carrying at school decreased by 60% (1.1 to 0.4%). Increases usually handgun-carrying had been significantly attributable to feminine, middle-school, and white college students, who had 3.04, 2.16, and 1.99 larger odds of carrying, respectively, in 2022 than in 2002. Decreased odds of handgun-carrying at school had been attributable to male and rural college students, with 70% and 80% decreases noticed, respectively.

There had been decreases seen in odds of favorable attitudes towards handgun-carrying at school over time (3.0 to 2.2%). Ease of handgun entry additionally decreased in odds over time (18.4 to 14.1%).

“Specific sociodemographic teams of adolescents contributed considerably to those adjustments, and a few teams report larger prevalences in present handgun-carrying and associated beliefs, which demonstrates the necessity for prevention efforts addressing the dangers of handgun entry and carrying to be tailor-made to sociodemographic teams,” the authors write.

2025 HealthDay.