TY - JOUR T1 - Perceptions of firearm-related harm among US adults living in firearm-owning households: a nationally representative study JF - Injury Prevention JO - Inj Prev SP - 86 LP - 89 DO - 10.1136/injuryprev-2021-044389 VL - 28 IS - 1 AU - Ali Rowhani-Rahbar AU - Miriam Joan Haviland AU - Deborah Azrael AU - Matthew Miller Y1 - 2022/02/01 UR - http://injuryprevention.bmj.com/content/28/1/86.abstract N2 - Decision-making on having firearms at home may be contingent on perceptions of the likelihood of their negative and positive outcomes. Using data from a nationally representative survey (n=4030) conducted during 30 July 2019 to 11 August 2019, we described how US adults living in firearm-owning households perceived the relative likelihood of firearm-related harm by injury intent (‘accidentally harm self or someone else with a gun’, ‘injure self on purpose with a gun’ and ‘injure someone else on purpose with a gun’) for groups at risk of compromised decision-making (children; adolescents and individuals with mental health issues, substance use disorders or cognitive impairment). We found that US adults living in firearm-owning households believe that unintentional firearm injuries are more likely than intentional self-inflicted or assault-related firearm injuries, despite evidence to the contrary. Prior evidence indicates that communicating risk in relative terms can motivate behaviour change; therefore, findings from this study might helpfully inform health communications around firearm safety. ER -