Over 70% of Mass Shootings in Developed Countries Happen in the U.S.
By analyzing openly accessible data from both developed and developing nations internationally, as well as reviewing previous research on mass shootings, Silva was able to paint a picture of the differences and similarities in the characteristics of mass shootings across the world. Crucially, he is also able to provide insight into the type of person carrying out the attacks; the details of the incident; and, indeed, the motives of why they took place – if such an explanation could be found.
Overall, it was shown that in developed countries (including the U.S.), shootings were more likely to be carried out by those with ideological motives, and fame-seeking motives. As well as schools, attacks in open spaces were also common – and most incidents involved handguns and shotguns.
Looking at the U.S. separately, shooters were more likely to use more than one firearm. The motivation of their attack was also distinct from other countries, with perpetrators facing employment and financial issues, as well as relationship problems.
“American mass shooters were more likely to attack factories, warehouses, and offices than perpetrators in all other combined countries. While individuals from all countries suffer from strain, this particular strain is largely a U.S. mass shooting motive,” explains Silva.
“Security measures should therefore focus on target hardening in high-risk workplaces, modelling other location-based intervention strategies that have effectively decreased incidents and casualties.
“Relationship problems present another distinct form of strain contributing to U.S. mass shootings. This is not to say that relationship problems do not exist in other countries or that they do not result in violence. In fact, many other countries have much higher rates of intimate partner violence and homicide. However, it is uniquely American that relationship problems end in mass shootings: where individuals outside of those contributing to relationship problems were also, or instead, targeted at random.”
In developing countries, mass shootings were more likely to involve perpetrators with a military or police history, and to occur within their place of work – so, an “attack from within”. 64 percent of all mass shootings involved this type of incident. A motive was often “difficult” to source from within publicly available documents though.
Comparing and summarizing, Silva added: “Mass shootings are a uniquely American problem, particularly in relation to other developed countries.”
His research disqualified incidents involving profit-driven criminal activity, state-sponsored violence, and familicide, as well as incidents involving organized terrorism and/or battles over sovereignty. This was because, he states, “it does not provide a valuable comparison with the U.S.– the primary focus of this study – the US has never had mass shootings rooted in organized terrorism and/or battles over sovereignty”.
Limitations of the research include its “reliance” on open-source data, which “means it is impossible to know if all cases have been captured” – an issue greatest in developing countries with limited data and non-English language news outlets hindering the ability to search and find information.
