A new survey released Nov. 7 by respected pollster Gallup indicates a record number of Americans believe in owning firearms for personal and home protection, and the percentage who say a gun makes their home a safer place has nearly doubled since 2000.
Gallup originally asked Americans about their views on the implications of having a gun in the home in 1993, and then updated the measure in 2000. Between 2000 and 2006, less than half of Americans believed having a gun at home makes it safer -- but since then, this percentage has significantly increased to a majority.
When asked if having a gun in the house makes their home safer or more dangerous, 63 percent of Americans polled said "safer" compared to 35 percent in 2000. A majority of both men (67 percent) and women (58 percent) said they believe having a gun in the home is a safety measure.
While figures on U.S. gun ownership have not shifted much since 2006, the Gallup pollsters observed it is significant to note the percentage of Americans who say that having a gun in the home makes that household safer has drastically climbed in the past eight years.
In summary, Gallup report suggested the increase in the perceived safety value of owning firearms for personal and home protection suggests guns are taking on more of a protective role than in the past.
"Florida passed the nation's first 'Stand Your Ground' law in 2005, followed by dozens of states that passed different versions of the law," the report said."In the decade since, Americans have become more likely to view guns as a means of self-protection."
The poll data were based on telephone interviews conducted Oct. 12-15, 2014, on the Gallup U.S. Daily survey, with a random sample of 1,017 adults, aged 18 and older, living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. For results based on the total sample of national adults, the margin of sampling error is ±4 percentage points at the 95-percent confidence level.
