Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Challenges In Measuring Firearm Prevalence: A Test Of Cook's Index Across The Rural–Urban Continuum, Noah R. Cypher

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Cook's Index is the most commonly used proxy for firearm prevalence. This research uses New York's Pistol Permits to measure legitimate firearm prevalence and compare it to Cook's Index. In this study, Cook's Index predicted impossible values for several counties that together contained a clear majority of New York State citizens. Cook's Index was also shown to be unreliable across types of counties. Rural and Urban counties had significantly different ratios of Cook's Index to Pistol Permits in New York. The models show a general finding that the relationship between Cook's Index and legitimate firearm ownership varies depending on the …