Understanding America's Gun Culture

(Hardback)

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Understanding Americas Gun Culture focuses on building understanding of some of the issues associated with US gun culture and the contemporary debate about the availability and use of guns. This edited volume is unique in that it draws on a wide variety of disciplines and presents perspectives on both sides of the debate. Contributors hail from the academic disciplines of history, social work, criminal justice, sociology, religion, and theological ethics as well as policy agencies. Some chapters examine the issues social-psychologically to help readers better understand dynamics within the debate. Others pose important ethical and philosophical questions about gun culture. Still others address practical policy solutions for enhancing gun safety and minimizing gun violence, even bringing in international perspectives. Together, the chapters create a thought-provoking compilation that offers insightful findings, considers theoretical and practical implications, and invites further exploration of the topic.

Reviews

This ambitiously titled work, published in the context of high-profile mass shootings, contains eight chapters. . . Valuable contributions focus on the rhetoric surrounding gun ownership, the gun culture of law-abiding citizens, and a study on the profiles of mass shooters in school settings. At first glance, the book suffers from having two chapters on the same subject: reconciling Christian ethics and US gun ownership. However, the Christian ethics chapter, by Matt Stolick, is the standout chapter of the book. He writes an excellent overview of gun laws in relation to the gun industry, though the chapter would have been better placed toward the front of the book. Chapters on social violence and gender differences in Caribbean and German gun culture are interesting. . . Overall, this book contributes to the literature on gun culture. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above. * CHOICE *
Understanding America's Gun Culture is a thoughtful and insightful edited collection. This book will help to inject relevant and contemporary gun culture topics into any classroom, and provide meaningful substance for anyone interested in these weighty and controversial topics. -- Jim D. Taylor, Ohio University, Zanesville
Understanding America's Gun Culture is an earnest reflection from a full range of perspectives on Americas gun culture and its growing influence in the Caribbean and Europe. Its essays address thoughtfully the rhetorical strategies and moral justifications in the many-sided debate over the role of guns in American life. -- Randolph Roth, Ohio State University
Many contributions to the fatally grid-locked and depressingly partisan U.S. gun debate generate more heat than light, serving only to further entrench the respective positions of advocates. This book, focusing instead upon the debate itself, provides a welcome and refreshing change. Drawing upon a wide range of social scientific, ethical, and philosophical perspectives, the various chapters comprising the collection seek to unpack and explore the much contested debate itself, what it means, how it works, and what it tells us about the contemporary U.S. This is essential reading for anyone interested in this vital aspect of U.S. law, politics, and culture and bold enough to relinquish the tired old clichs for the nuance and complexity of understanding a real world dilemma. -- Peter Squires, University of Brighton
This edited volume is unique in its scope and contemplation of the role of firearms in society. With a wide range of expertise among the authors, this collection of essays offers something for anyone who is curious about the link between firearms and culture. -- Trent Steidley, University of Denver

Author Bio

Craig Hovey is associate professor of religion at Ashland University and executive director of the Ashland Center for Nonviolence. Lisa Fisher worked in higher education for more than a decade and is now consulting director for a Washington, DC IT firm.