Sociodemographic and gun possession factors contributing to gun policy attitudes among undergraduate students

Objective: Examine the sociodemographic and gun possession factors associated with gun policy attitudes among undergraduates. Methods: Undergraduates at a west coast university (N = 1,474) completed a questionnaire with measures of country of birth, political ideology, gender identity, gun possession at one's own residence, friends' and family's gun possession, and attitudes about concealed carry, ban on assault weapons, and guns at home. Results: Participants born outside of the United States are likely to oppose all types of gun policies; the effects of gender identity and political ideology are consistent with existing research, with conservatism supporting policies that make more guns available, and female and gender-identity-minority participants opposing them; and the effects of gun possession are not fully consistent with existing research. Conclusion: More research is needed to reconcile the results. University administrators may employ this study's main takeaways to tailor programs for foreign-born students, female students, and politically motivated students.