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Cited by 104Gun Ownership and Violence ResearchCrime Patterns and InterventionsHomicide, Infanticide, and Child Abuse

The Transmission of Gun and Other Weapon-Involved Violence Within Social Networks

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Tracy, Melissa, Braga, Anthony A., Papachristos, Andrew V.·2016·Epidemiologic Reviews
DOI 10.1093/epirev/mxv009PMC PMC4762247
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Abstract

Fatal and nonfatal injuries resulting from gun violence remain a persistent problem in the United States. The available research suggests that gun violence diffuses among people and across places through social relationships. Understanding the relationship between gun violence within social networks and individual gun violence risk is critical in preventing the spread of gun violence within populations. This systematic review examines the existing scientific evidence on the transmission of gun and other weapon-related violence in household, intimate partner, peer, and co-offending networks. Our review identified 16 studies published between 1996 and 2015 that suggest that exposure to a victim or perpetrator of violence in one's interpersonal relationships and social networks increases the risk of individual victimization and perpetration. Formal network analyses find high concentrations of gun violence in small networks and that exposure to gun violence in one's networks is highly correlated with one's own probability of being a gunshot victim. Physical violence by parents and weapon use by intimate partners also increase risk for victimization and perpetration. Additional work is needed to better characterize the mechanisms through which network exposures increase individual risk for violence and to evaluate interventions aimed at disrupting the spread of gun and other weapon violence in high-risk social networks.

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  • These CMOs support existing overlapping theories such as social learning theory, social network theory, power theory, and the general aggression model.

    “These CMOs therefore support existing overlapping theories such as social learning theory (Bandura, 1977), social network theory (Tracy et al., 2016), power theory (Straus et al., 1980), and the general aggression model (Anderson & Bushman, 2002).”

    From What Are the Mechanisms Underpinning Intergenerational Transmission of Violence Perpetration? A Realist Review (2026) · cites this paper as Tracy et al., 2016

  • Exposure to violence through co-offending or network relationships may increase the risk of violent behaviour.

    “The literature further demonstrates that exposure to violence through co-offending or network relationships may increase the risk of violent behaviour (Tracy et al., 2016; Papachristos et al., 2015a; Fox et al., 2021; Bailey et al., 2020; Conway and McCord 2020; McGloin & Piquero, 2009; Bond & Bushman, 2017).”

    From The Compounding Effect: How Co-Offending Exacerbates the Harm Caused by Violent Offenders (2024) · cites this paper as Tracy et al., 2016

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Authors
Tracy, M., Braga, A. A., & Papachristos, A. V.
Affiliations
State University of New York (US)
Corresponding author
Tracy, Melissa
ORCID
Venue
Epidemiologic Reviews
Publisher
Oxford University Press (OUP)
Published
2016-01-05
Volume
38
Issue
1
Pages
mxv009
ISSN
  • 0193-936X (ISSN-L)
  • 1478-6729
DOI
10.1093/epirev/mxv009
PMC
PMC4762247
OpenAlex
W2270381399
Cited by
104
References
5
Citations by year
2026: 3 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 9 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 30 · 2021: 21 · 2020: 7 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 7 · 2017: 9 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 1
FWCI
10.57
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Epidemiologic Reviews (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • HighWire Press Open Archive (submittedVersion)
Funders
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Health › Gun Ownership and Violence Research
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Crime Patterns and Interventions
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Homicide, Infanticide, and Child Abuse
Keywords
gun violence, social networks, domestic violence, intimate partner violence, peer networks, co-offending, victimization risk, parental violence, network analysis, violence prevention
MeSH terms
Firearms, Humans, Interpersonal Relations, Peer Group, Risk Factors, Social Environment, Violence, Weapons

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