Adverse childhood experiences linked to increased defensive gun use through heightened threat sensitivity

A new study published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research explores how adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) influence defensive gun use among adults with firearm access. The researchers found that individuals exposed to ACEs, such as abuse, neglect, or household dysfunction, are more likely to engage in defensive gun use due to heightened sensitivity to perceived threats. This suggests that for some people, early traumatic experiences can shape a worldview where danger feels ever-present, potentially prompting the use of firearms.

Adverse childhood experiences have long been recognized as risk factors for various negative outcomes, including mental health challenges, risky behaviors, and interpersonal violence. However, little research has focused on how these early experiences might affect patterns of firearm use in adulthood, particularly defensive gun use. Defensive gun use refers to using or displaying a firearm to protect oneself, others, or property, whether or not the situation involves an actual threat.

While proponents argue that DGU is a legitimate and necessary form of self-defense, critics highlight its potential to escalate conflicts and increase harm. The United States, with its high rates of firearm ownership and prevalence of ACEs, presents a context where these issues intersect.

“My research interests stem from a curiosity about how experiences years prior to an outcome come to influence that outcome. I am especially interested in how changes in how people think may explain the link between an individual’s experiences and their behavior,” said study author Sultan Altikriti, a postdoctoral fellow at the New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center in the
School of Public Health at Rutgers University.

“Research has done a great job of identifying early-life risk factors and their associated future harms. My research deals with identifying the specific cognitive links between these risk factors and the increased likelihood of negative life outcomes. Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and gun use are examples of salient early risk factors and serious, potentially deadly behavior later in life.”

The study analyzed data from 3,130 adults with firearm access, drawn from a larger nationally representative sample of 8,009 U.S. adults recruited through an online research panel. Participants answered questions about their exposure to ACEs, engagement in defensive gun use, and psychological factors such as threat sensitivity and depressive symptoms.

ACEs were measured using a composite score based on self-reported experiences of physical and emotional abuse, sexual abuse, and household dysfunction. Threat sensitivity was assessed using participants’ agreement with statements reflecting distrust and hypervigilance, such as “people can’t be trusted” or “people are not what they seem.” Depressive symptoms were evaluated through a standardized questionnaire measuring issues like low mood, fatigue, and difficulty concentrating.

Defensive gun use was measured by asking participants whether they had ever used a firearm in specific defensive scenarios, such as telling someone they were armed, showing a firearm, or firing it either near or at a perceived threat.

The researchers found that individuals with higher ACE scores were more likely to report engaging in defensive gun use. Each additional ACE was linked to a 17% increase in the likelihood of defensive gun use.

People with higher levels of threat sensitivity were more likely to engage in defensive gun use. Threat sensitivity partially explained the relationship between ACEs and DGU, accounting for about 11% of the total association.

“ACEs have been linked to a wide range of negative life outcomes, including poor mental health, criminal behavior, and even early death,” Altikriti told PsyPost. “Early intervention to prevent ACEs is an efficient strategy to reduce harm broadly. Into adulthood, however, ACEs may have already impacted how individuals experience and interpret the world around them. Interventions can target these downstream effects of ACEs to protect against future harm. This study was focused on identifying some of those intervention targets to reduce gun violence among adults. Increased threat sensitivity seems to be one promising avenue for that.”

In contrast, while depressive symptoms were associated with ACEs, they did not significantly predict engagement in defensive gun use. This suggests that internalizing behaviors like depression may not drive defensive firearm use in the same way that externalizing behaviors like heightened threat sensitivity do.

“The relationships between ACEs and threat sensitivity and ACEs and depressive symptoms were very similar in magnitude, but depressive symptoms were unrelated to defensive gun use,” Altikriti said. “This suggested that although threat sensitivity and depressive symptoms may both result from ACEs, only threat sensitivity appears to then increase the odds that someone will have engaged in defensive gun use. This highlights that, for some people, ACEs may make them see the world as a more threatening place and leave them predisposed to using a firearm to defend themselves, whether or not they are actually in danger.”

Men and individuals exposed to direct or indirect firearm victimization were also more likely to report defensive gun use. However, other factors like income, education, and marital status were not significant predictors in this study.

The study focused on threat sensitivity and depressive symptoms as potential mediators but these factors explain only a small portion of the relationship between ACEs and defensive gun use. Other mechanisms, such as anxiety, impulsivity, or substance use, may also play a role and warrant further investigation.

“Threat sensitivity accounted for a small portion of the association between ACEs and defensive gun use,” Altikriti noted. “This was not unexpected, as the relationships between early life risk factors and outcomes years later often have complex causal pathways. This complexity cannot be distilled into a few factors without diminishing our ability to account for the outcome of interest. A good balance between simplicity and complexity helps make research informative yet still policy-relevant.”

“My long-term goal for this project is to continue looking for and identifying factors that link ACEs with adverse outcomes in adulthood. My hope is that this research can be used to implement effective intervention strategies to mitigate the harms associated with ACEs.”

The measure of defensive gun use relied on participants’ self-reports, which may not distinguish between legitimate and illegitimate defensive actions. Future studies could benefit from collecting more contextual information about defensive gun use incidents to better understand the circumstances and rationale behind firearm use.

“I want to emphasize that defensive gun use is based on the perception of threat,” Altikriti explained. “So, although defensive gun use can be a justified and sometimes necessary response to the behavior of others, there are likely to be some incidents that are not justified and may themselves be an instigation of violence rather than a reaction to it. These incidents are more likely to be the ones associated with threat sensitivity.”

The study, “Adverse childhood experiences and defensive gun use: The indirect role of threat sensitivity and depressive symptoms,” was authored by Sultan Altikriti, Daniel C. Semenza, Alexander Testa, Dylan B. Jackson, and Michael D. Anestis.