Support for Gun Control: the Influence of Personal,Sociotropic, and Ideological Concerns1

Two random telephone surveys were conducted-one in Evanston, Illinois and one in Morton Grove, Illinois-to assess the motivations underlying public support for handgun control. The data from both surveys suggested that such support was linked most strongly to citizen beliefs about the effect of a handgun ban on the overall crime rate. Little support was found for either the suggestion that gun control opposition is linked to concerns about personal protection against crime or for the suggestion that views about gun control are part of a more general ideological orientation.