Science News
Fear and social pressure are ‘overarming’ the US. As more people arm, others feel compelled to do the same as chances of confronting someone with a gun increases. The fear of being the only unarmed person in a confrontation is enough, on its own, to push gun…
🔫 Dartmouth study reveals how personal choices and social networks lead to the U.S. having 120 firearms per 100 people, a phenomenon termed "overarming" where collective costs outweigh individual benefits.
🤝 An evolutionary game theory model developed by researchers Feng Fu, Daniel Rockmore, and Michael Herron analyzes how individual decisions to arm are influenced by others, potentially leading to overarming.
🔬 The study incorporated data from COVID-19 pandemic firearm sales, noting how a feedback loop of fear and arming, similar to "mutually assured destruction," drives gun purchases.
💡 The research suggests that public information campaigns and targeted interventions within social networks can help reduce overarming by altering perceptions of risk and leveraging community ties.
#GunViolence #Sociology #GameTheory
🤝 An evolutionary game theory model developed by researchers Feng Fu, Daniel Rockmore, and Michael Herron analyzes how individual decisions to arm are influenced by others, potentially leading to overarming.
🔬 The study incorporated data from COVID-19 pandemic firearm sales, noting how a feedback loop of fear and arming, similar to "mutually assured destruction," drives gun purchases.
💡 The research suggests that public information campaigns and targeted interventions within social networks can help reduce overarming by altering perceptions of risk and leveraging community ties.
#GunViolence #Sociology #GameTheory