Health Promotion Disease Preve (PUBH-345-OL1-25475)

After reviewing the slides and resources provided in this module, I was not surprised when the United States was reported to have higher rate of violent crimes compared to industrialized countries in the world. Even though the United States is the most developed country compared to third world countries, they still have more homicide, firearm-related deaths, forcible rapes, and suicide rates. I think there are multiple causes to increased violent crimes such as political conflict, cultural exposure, and substance and alcohol abuse. The media portrays violence a lot in movies, television, and video games that may influence this behavior in children.

In America, gun violence is considered a huge public health epidemic and crisis for public safety. An article states that in 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data shows, 46,728 individuals died from gun violence in the United States, the third-highest annual total ever recorded (John Hopkins, 2025). I believe a reason gun violence contributes to high violent crime rates is because of the accessibility. The United States has many civilian-owned guns than any other country. Everyday arguments between parents, road rage incidents, or even a parent that does not secure their gun in a safe and use safety precautions can cause violence. Children watch everything you do so it takes one parent to make a mistake by securing their weapon for a child to find it and do something that is easily preventable.

To prevent violence in America it would require long-term approaches the risk factors and social conditions that contribute to violent behavior. Violence is influenced by access to weapons, poverty, trauma, mental health, and instable laws. I believe everyone has the right to protect themselves and family, however, I think they need to strengthen gun safety measures such as universal background checks, safe storage laws, and required classes on how to safely use a weapon if they pass background checks. These measures can help aim to reduce access to weapons for individuals at high risk of harming themselves or others. I would also want to expand access to mental health care for untreated trauma, depression, substance use disorders, and chronic stress, which can increase the risk of violence. These measures could include affordable counseling services, community mental health clinics, and substance abuse treatment programs.

References

Why is Gun Violence a Public Health Epidemic? | Center for Gun Violence Solutions. (2025). Center for Gun Violence Solutions.