Mental Health Interventions to Prevent School Shootings

TLDR: Take away the guns

Another school year means another school shooting in the United States. And, yet again, Republicans offer few solutions other than improving mental health. Let’s pretend for a moment that they were thoughtful and honest about their intentions to follow mental health research and clinical guidance. What does this literature really say?

The research on mental health and school shootings is robust, with high-quality studies spanning decades. The evidence suggests that there are few clear predictors of school shootings beyond access to a gun, and the most reliable way to prevent school shootings is to remove that access by taking away the gun.

So, sure, Republicans—let’s talk about mental health interventions to reduce school violence. Let’s make sure that kids have no access to guns, and let’s take away the guns when they do.

***

Fun fact: Tom Kitt arranged the Pitch Perfect riff off!