Understanding gun owners’ perceptions of potential firearm policies’ harms and benefits is critical to successful policy development and implementation. While gun lobbying groups like the National Rifle Association heavily influence policy discussions, they do not represent the preferences of all gun owners. Gun owners area diverse group, and their preferences may diverge from those captured by large lobbying groups. Researchers Damion J. Grasso, Kerri M. Raissian, Mitchell Doucette, Austen Bradley McGuire, and Jennifer Necci Dineen therefore sought to capture the nuances of firearm owners’ perception by validating a novel instrument. The resulting Harms and Benefits Inventory (HBI) is a tool policymakers can use to survey citizens and better craft firearm safety laws and regulations.

Users can access the HBI data in two ways: by requesting and accessing the micro data or by going to the portal and viewing the variables. Users can also access and read the briefs on the HBI survey methods. If you have any questions about the information on this page, please email arms@uconn.edu