IT’s Time to Stop Blaming Mental Health for Mass Shootings
A new academic review from the Consortium for Risk-Based Firearm Policy contradicts Fox News’ conflation of violence and mental health, finding that the two are only related under narrow circumstances and that the vast majority of people with mental health conditions are not violent. The report calls for developing better “evidence-based criteria” for determining who is more likely to commit acts of violence and prohibiting them from owning guns.
The December 11 report is the work of mental health and gun violence researchers from top universities and research programs including the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research. The report emphasizes a commitment to create evidence-based gun violence prevention policy recommendations that are informed by “the best available research” on gun violence and mental health.
While noting that it is important not to stigmatize those with mental health conditions, the Consortium’s report recommends expanding the federal prohibition on gun ownership by individuals adjudicated as having a serious mental health condition to also include persons receiving involuntary outpatient treatment when a court has ruled the person is a danger to themselves or others.
The Consortium’s approach, where the recommendation is based on academic research, stands in sharp contrast to Fox News’ reporting. Indeed, Fox News’ coverage of the relationship between gun violence and mental health has often failed to provide a nuanced picture of what is a complex issue, with the network unfairly stereotyping individuals with mental health conditions as prone to violence and using mental health to distract from the most significant factor in much of gun violence: access to firearms.
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