Unfortunately, the way we’ve thought about gun violence has made the politics of progress nearly impossible. The even bigger problem is we’ve been thinking about gun violence all wrong.
The most politically contentious part of the debate has been about gun control. Guns, on the one hand, make violent crime much more deadly, but at the same time, can also be used for self-defense against crime. I’ve spent most of my professional life looking at the economics of crime—especially gun violence—and how to prevent it. The best available data—full disclosure: I was one of the researchers who conducted this study—suggests that if there was a way to somehow get rid of the 400 million guns we have in the U.S. (a country of 330 million people), on balance, things would get substantially safer. That’s led to a lot of debate over gun control that has become unproductive, especially at the national level. (There’s no shortage of examples; a left-of-center think-tank’s article on the NRA’s political messaging entitled “Guns, Lies and Fear;” the NRA accusing President Biden of “coddling criminals”—the list goes on.) That, in turn, has led lots of people to conclude that, if gun control is stalled, we can’t solve gun violence.
But what that perspective misses is that the main effect guns have on gun violence is to make violence more deadly. Even if we can’t do all that much about guns, we can make real progress on gun violence by reducing interpersonal violence. In fact, a growing body of data and evidence shows that preventing shootings in the first place is not only possible, but enormously cost-effective compared to the traditional policies of U.S. partisan politics. …
There are social programs that help people better understand their own minds and how to prevent their emotions from taking over. My research center has partnered with a remarkable set of non-profits in Chicago including Youth Guidance, Brightpoint, and Youth Advocate Programs to study programs that help young people recognize when they’re about to engage in something like catastrophizing (or something else) that makes the risk of violence more likely, and how to avoid that. These sorts of programs, and even lower-cost versions that detention-center staff can deliver, have been shown to reduce crime and violence by 20 to 50%.
That also means policies that make our communities and neighborhoods more open—even something as small as encouraging more adults to spend more time outdoors—can help defuse conflicts. The impacts can be remarkably large: policies like ensuring every neighborhood has some commercial spaces interspersed with residential uses, cleaning up vacant lots or abandoned houses, or even improving street lighting have been found to generate 20%, 30%, and even up to 50% reductions in violence and shootings. It also keeps the costs typically low.
The great thing about prevention is that it sidesteps all the political fights over gun control and “root causes” and, for that matter, what the right prison penalties should be after a terrible crime has already been committed. Now there’s no victim or shooter in the first place.
For over 100 years, we’ve been arguing about whether our solutions should focus on carrots or sticks when gun violence largely doesn’t seem to respond much to incentives at all. Progress on this seemingly intractable problem is indeed possible, but we have to understand that what we have been doing in the past comes at the problem wrong. By using behavioral economics tools—many of which are proven, and low-cost—we can stop most of gun violence before it starts.
— Jens Ludwig in We’ve Been Thinking About Gun Violence All Wrong
Ok. At least this thinking is outside the box. As long as it doesn’t devolve back to gun control.
Rest assured gun control will always be part of a “comprehensive” and “holistic” approach to neanderthals with zero time horizon killing each other over street corners and disses.
JC, his non-gun control solutions are run-of-the-mill left-wing ideas focused on the government replacing the traditional parents’ roles. Ludwig is either another clueless Dem, or he’s afraid that talking about the real solutions would end his career.
Ludwig stil uses the term “gun violence” even in the title (maybe an editor supplied that title instead) so
. . . he’s still fixated on guns more than he is on violence. So he will continue to “think about (fill in the blank) violence all wrong” as long as he fills the blank with the instruments of violence.
“But what that perspective misses is that the main effect guns have on gun violence is to make violence more deadly.”
yeah, some way or another is the thing that its not true – the ‘perspective’ misses a lot. These things always miss a lot of violence, trying to blame everything on ‘guns’ when in reality all other forms of weapon-violence, collectively, outnumber ‘gun-violence’ by 1,000 : 0.05
Saint Peter at the pearly gates: “Hi Joe, glad ya made it. How did you die?”
Joe: “I was stabbed to death by a Tren de Aragua illegal alien gang member.”
Saint Peter at the pearly gates: “Well, thanks goodness you weren’t shot. The violence would have been more deadly if a gun was used.”
In the United States:
‘knife violence’ – As of March 14th, 2025: There were ~1,600 criminal attacks upon victims daily across the United States where the perpetrator used a knife.
Or…. how about ‘hand violence’: As of March 14, 2025: There were ~3,800 criminal attacks upon victims daily across the United States where the perpetrator used bare hands.
Or…. how about ‘blunt-object violence’: As of March 14, 2025: There were ~4,300 criminal attacks upon victims daily across the United States where the perpetrator used a ‘blunt-object’ (i.e. bat, crowbar, house-hold items, etc…)
Or…. how about ‘ligature violence’: As of March 14, 2025: There were ~1,200 criminal attacks upon victims daily across the United States where the perpetrator used a ‘ligature’ (to choke) (i.e. rope, extension cord, chain, etc…)
Or…. how about ‘fire violence’: As of March 14, 2025: There were ~700 criminal attacks upon victims daily across the United States where the perpetrator used fire.
Or…. how about ‘poison violence’: As of March 14, 2025: There were ~1,200 criminal attacks upon victims daily across the United States where the perpetrator used ‘poison’ (includes drugs either illegal or prescription or over-the-counter, household cleaners, etc…)
Or…. how about ‘chemical violence’: As of March 14, 2025: There were ~2,200 criminal attacks upon victims daily across the United States where the perpetrator used ‘chemicals’ (i.e. pepper/mace/bear spray, ammonia, acids, etc…)
Or…. how about ‘pencil/pen violence’: As of March 14, 2025: There were ~300 criminal attacks upon victims daily across the United States where the perpetrator used a sharpened pencil or pen.
the list goes on for non-firearm for a bit more but just for these categories of criminal attacks upon victims – this is over ~5,580,000 victims over the last year period March 15th 2024 – March 14th 2025
(note: numbers year trend – from March 15th 2024 – March 14th 2025: varies +/- ~10% depending on specific day. numbers rounded. includes ‘domestic violence’. in the overall daily ‘criminal violence’ attacks daily across the United States, a firearm was used by the perpetrator in less than 1% of cases.)
Or…. how about LGBTQ violence….
In 2022, 48.2% of lesbian women reported violence against them in the forms of physical violence, stalking (including with violent assault), or rape by their partners (either by their partner only or with the involvement of male(s) or female(s) bought in by the partner —- two thirds were exclusively the partner female perpetrator, one third was the partner female perpetrator with involvement of one or more males or females perpetrator bought in my the female partner perpetrator).
In 2022, 66% of ‘transgender’ (term as used here also includes those who have either partially or fully transitioned) individuals reported experiencing violence against them in the forms of physical violence, stalking (including with violent assault), or rape, with their ‘partner’ (the term ‘partner’ includes real biological male or female and ‘transgender’) being the perpetrator. (two thirds of perpetrators were exclusively the ‘partner’, one third of perpetrators was the ‘partner’ with involvement of one or more others either real biological male or female or ‘transgender’).
In 2022, 38% of gay and bisexual males reported experiencing violence against them in the forms of physical violence, stalking (including with violent assault), or rape, with their ‘partner’ being the perpetrator. (for perpetrator(s): 3/4 of those the ‘partner’ exclusively, one quarter of those were the ‘partner’ with others bought in that were either real biological male or transgender, with, in the case of bisexual sometimes real biological females were bought in by the ‘partner’)
In 2022, 63% of bisexual females reported experiencing violence against them in the forms of physical violence, stalking (including with violent assault), or rape, with their ‘partner’ being the perpetrator. (for perpetrator(s): 80% of these was the ‘partner’ exclusively, and 20% with others bought in by the ‘partner’ that were biological male or female bisexuals or a mixture of ‘transgender’, lesbian, or straight males and females).
In 2022, (overall, for all violent crimes including sexually based offenses) 69% of violent criminals were either gay or bisexual or expressed ‘gender identity’ issues.
In 2023, all of the above 2022 percentages increased by 8%.
In 2024, all of the above increased percentages in 2023 increased by 10%
An 18% increase above the 2022 percentages over the years 2023 and 2024.
In 2022, as in past years the main ‘environments’ in which members of the LGBTQ community experienced violence (as victims) involved prostitution, drugs, risky sex practices, and partner-perpetrator violence which accounted for more violence against members of the LGBTQ community than all other sources combined. In 2023 and 2024 the same trend continued.
[Bidens] ATF’s $20 Million Scam EXPOSED!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXkIw5HnRmA
So Jens Ludwig’s big, out-of-the-box idea is…to be more civilized. Gotcha, piece of cake…little did I suspect that my little exurban neighborhood was on the cutting edge of “behavioral economics”. Or, as we call it out here in flyover country normal life. Funny how not a single community organizer or social worker was needed.
Now how long will it take this genius to figure out that gun control was never about violent crime?
“We’ve Been Thinking About Gun Violence All Wrong”
Start with The Ten Commandments for best remedy.
My assumption is that regardless of the amount of “gun control” that occurs, the thugs will always get the tools of their trade, and those tools are guns. Gun control would take guns out of the hands of the good guys, and only bad guys will have guns. Also, I am old. if I don’t have a gun, I can’t really defend myself against even an unarmed twenty-something year old thug bent upon beating me up and stealing my stuff.
By any chance are you the same Ralph that was on TTAG a number of years back?
The master of wisecracks with the 2 faces of tragedy and laughter as a gravitar?
You’ve probably seen the meme:
Normie to hipster: give up marijuana to reduce drug gang violence.
Hipster: but I’m not violent.
Normie: welcome to the gun control debate…
So if they all just acted like white European stock Americans who knew all about gun safety and stayed the hell away from gangs, the violence would tumble down to nearly nothing. You know, just act white. Let me know how that works out for you.
“By using behavioral economics tools—many of which are proven, and low-cost—we can stop most of gun violence before it starts.”
These tools would likely reduce all violence, not just gun violence.
That Ludwig still uses rhetorical devices such as gun violence suggests that he still won’t let go of an academically unsound habit.
Has banning guns made the UK any safer?
They have been forced to offer knife amnesties to get those killer weapons off the street instead of looking at the immigrants that are responsible for the majority of killings.
The problem has never been about the availability of guns, but the subcultures that thinks nothing of violence.
There’s still plenty of crimes committed using guns in the UK, they just don’t report on it and fudge the numbers so they can pretend their gun-free island paradise has zero gun crime.
WELL, I BE DAMN!!! A PROFESSOR THAT HAS SOME COMMON SENSE!!! WOW!!!
another spammer – ‘Fyooz’ has a link in his name.
another spammer – ‘LMB’ has a link in his name.