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Why We Are Losing the War on Gun Violence in the United States pp 173–186Cite as

Gun Buyback Programs in the United States

Abstract

Gun buyback programs allow individuals to exchange firearms for an incentive. Beyond the simple disposal of unwanted firearms, key objectives of gun buyback programs include reducing firearm availability in the community, providing gun safety education, and mobilizing communities to prevent firearm violence. These programs have been widespread in the United States for the last 50 years; however, they have not been shown to reduce the incidence of firearm violence. Nevertheless, many communities continue implementing buyback programs as a gun violence prevention strategy. This chapter reviews the history of gun buyback programs and considers evidence for their efficacy. The final section provides specific recommendations, in accordance with new research findings, for community leaders seeking to design an effective gun buyback program.

Keywords

  • Gun violence
  • Law enforcement
  • Crime
  • Gun buyback programs
  • Injury prevention

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Connecticut School of Medicine, Farmington, CT, USA

    Sandra Carpenter, Kevin Borrup & Brendan T. Campbell

  2. Injury Prevention Center, Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, Hartford, CT, USA

    Kevin Borrup & Brendan T. Campbell

  3. Department of Pediatric Surgery, Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, Hartford, CT, USA

    Brendan T. Campbell

Authors
  1. Sandra Carpenter
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  2. Kevin Borrup
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  3. Brendan T. Campbell
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Brendan T. Campbell .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Surgery, University of Florida College of Medicine Jacksonville, Jacksonville, FL, USA

    Marie Crandall

  2. Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, USA

    Stephanie Bonne

  3. NRI, Falls Church, VA, USA

    Dr. Jennifer Bronson

  4. School of Public Health, University of Maryland, College Park, College Park, MD, USA

    Dr. Woodie Kessel

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Carpenter, S., Borrup, K., Campbell, B.T. (2021). Gun Buyback Programs in the United States. In: Crandall, M., Bonne, S., Bronson, J., Kessel, W. (eds) Why We Are Losing the War on Gun Violence in the United States. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-55513-9_15

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-55513-9_15

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