Examining the correspondence between political ideology and gun policy attitudes among Black and White people in the United States

Abstract The present research examined whether political ideology corresponded with gun attitudes among people disproportionately experiencing gun violence—Black people in the United States. Across four studies ( N = 25,847) we found that race (Black vs. White) interacted with political ideology to predict gun attitudes, safety perceptions, and policy preferences. Among White participants, being more conservative corresponded with more positive gun attitudes, perceptions, and support for pro‐gun policies. Among Black participants, the relationship was weak or nonsignificant. Further, experience with gun violence also interacted with political ideology such that the relationship between gun attitudes, policy preferences and political ideology was weaker among participants who reported experience with gun violence compared with participants that reported no experience. These results have implications for the generalizability of the single‐item political ideology scale. This research also indicates that efforts to reduce gun violence focusing on reducing political polarization overlook that the polarization occurs largely among White people which may ultimately divert attention and resources from Black communities most impacted by gun violence.