Mass Shooting Research Paper

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Pages: 5

Sarah Macdonald Dr. Washick Composition and Rhetoric 1320-107 7 March 2024 Shooting Down Myths about Violent Crime: What is the Solution to Mass Shootings? Columbine High School -. McDonald’s. The. Charleston. The. Los Vegas. The. San Bernardino. All of these places have had tragic episodes of violent shootings occur, taking too many lives. What is the reason behind this? What occurs when mass shooters partake in these horrible crimes? And what can we, as a society, do to stop them? While there are many reasons a mass shooter decides to partake in violent crime, the majority of statistics show that it is because of reasons such as childhood trauma (Peterson 537), substance abuse (Vintiadis 547), irresponsible gun ownership (Lapierre 548), and poor …show more content…
According to Jillian Peterson, a psychologist at Hamline University, “most mass shooters experienced early childhood trauma and exposure to violence at a young age” (Peterson 537). While the types of trauma varied, Peterson explained that this is often a “precursor to mental health concerns, including depression, anxiety, thought disorders, or suicidality.” (Peterson 537). Mental health and childhood trauma is a recurring theme amongst those who participate in violent crime. However, not all mass shooters are mentally ill, and the stigma that those who are mentally ill are violent is untrue and harmful. As Vintiadis says, “Generalizing the whole population (that of the mentally ill or to the not mentally ill) is unfair and not supported by evidence” (Vintiadis 546). This being said, addressing and treating mental health at its roots could be what makes the difference in bringing down rates of mass shootings. Furthermore, addressing substance abuse could lower the rates of mass shootings. Philosophy teacher Elly Vintiadis points out that “There is substantial evidence that people with mental illness who do end up committing violent