Frequent Exposure to Gun Violence Is Associated with Depression, Suicide and Mental Health

Exposure to gun violence can severely impact one’s mental health, often leading to depression, suicidal ideation and increased need for mental health support and resources, according to a Rutgers Health study.

A national survey of 8,009 non-institutionalized people older than 18 participated in an online-based panel that examined the relationship between gun violence exposure and mental health, including suicide. The study outlined both lifetime and past year exposure to gun violence and the association it has with increased depression and suicide risks.

“This is the first study using nationally representative data that demonstrates a link between exposure to gun violence and suicide,” said lead author Daniel Semenza, director of research at the New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center and assistant professor at the Department of Urban-Global Public Health at the Rutgers School of Public Health and in the Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminal Justice at Rutgers University. “When we think about what we can do to improve suicide prevention efforts, we have to include interpersonal violence prevention in the conversation.”

Nearly 40% of participants reported hearing gunshots multiple times throughout their lives. Overall, 12% of the participants said they experienced high exposure to gun violence, with five or more incidents throughout their lives, while about 27% said they had heard a gunshot within the past year alone.

More frequent and more recent gun violence exposure was generally associated with a heightened risk for depression, suicide and increased use of mental health services.

The recent study was published in the journal Social Science & Medicine.

Semenza and coauthors of the study found that gun violence exposure, even when indirect, has profound consequences on mental health. They said that addressing interpersonal violence is essential for any strategy aimed at reducing suicide rates. Their findings reveal that both single instances and repeated exposure to various forms of gun violence significantly harm mental well-being.

Participants reported repeated exposure to certain forms of gun violence, such as knowing someone who died by firearm suicide (8%), being threatened with a gun (5%), knowing a family member or friend who was shot (6%) and witnessing a shooting (3%).

“Gun violence exposure is harmful for many different health outcomes, but this study shows that both the frequency and the recency of exposure to gun violence is detrimental to mental well-being,” Semenza said.

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