Rural-urban differences in post-9/11 women veterans’ firearm ownership and characteristics

TL;DR

Rural women veterans are more likely to own firearms compared to urban women veterans, which could impact suicide prevention efforts.

Contribution

This study identifies rural-urban disparities in firearm ownership among post-9/11 women veterans.

Findings

Rural women veterans are more likely to report personal and household firearm ownership.

No significant differences were found in firearm types, storage, or reasons for ownership between rural and urban women veterans.

Rural women veterans were more likely to own only long guns or both long guns and handguns.

Abstract

Access to firearms is associated with elevated risk for suicide; however, knowledge of firearm ownership and characteristics among rural residing women Veterans remains limited. Given increasing rates of firearm suicide among women Veterans, we examined if rurality was associated with firearm ownership and firearm characteristics (type, number, reasons for ownership, perceived safety, storage) among women Veterans.

In 2020, 525 post-9/11 era women Veterans completed a survey assessing firearm ownership and characteristics. Prevalence ratios (PR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated to compare differences in firearm ownership and related characteristics between rural and urban residing women Veterans, using Poisson regression with robust standard errors.

Rural, relative to urban, residing women Veterans were significantly more likely to report personal firearm ownership (PR = 1.30; 95%CI: 1.07, 1.57) and household firearm ownership (PR = 1.22; 95%CI: 1.05, 1.41). Significant differences were not detected regarding types of firearms, number of firearms, firearm storage methods, reasons for owning, or perceived sense of safety from the presence of a firearm in the home. In a post-hoc sensitivity analysis with an alternative conceptualization of rurality, rural residing, compared to urban residing, women Veterans were more likely to own only a long gun or both long guns and handguns.

Assessing for personal ownership and household firearm access is an important component of suicide prevention for both rural and urban residing women Veterans and may be especially relevant to post-9/11 women Veterans residing in rural areas.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s40621-025-00622-9.