The Firearm Implicit Association Test: A Validation Study

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

12-12-2022

Publication Title

Journal of Personality Assessment

Abstract

Firearm violence causes significant public health burden, but there is a lack of research concerning motivations for firearm access despite clear epidemiological risk. Developing robust tools to measure attitudes toward firearms and firearm-related behaviors can improve our ability to conduct firearm violence research. We aimed to develop a feasible and effective tool that could indirectly measure firearm beliefs. A total of 274 undergraduates were recruited from two southern universities and completed an implicit association test (IAT) designed to indirectly assess attitudes toward firearms (Firearm IAT). Participants also completed self-report measures, including Attitude Toward Guns Scale (ATGS) and Gun Beliefs and Behavior Scale (GBBS) to examine explicit attitudes toward firearms. Demographic and firearm-related data were also assessed. The Firearm IAT revealed an association between firearms and negatively valenced words. The Firearm IAT had a good internal consistency and construct validity with a D score that is significantly different from 0 and a reliability score of 0.84. The Firearm IAT showed significant positive correlations with ATGS and GBBS suggesting this measure could serve as an indirect assessment of firearm attitudes.

First Page

770

Last Page

778

PubMed ID

36507628

Volume

105

Issue

6

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