Well, the first question would be, do things like right-to-carry laws diminish the black market for guns? I'm not sure how large of a section of the market that would actually be.
I don't remember if the study actually said that there was a greater effect on mass shootings than there was on violent crimes against individuals, but there was a side note about how statistically speaking the mass shooter is far more likely to face armed opposition than the individual-targeting criminal. Which makes me think that the effects you're suggesting would probably have more impact on the latter than the former, and if there is a discrepancy that could explain it.
Another possible psychological factor is that acquiring a gun legally tends to require proof of some kind of training, which is likely to make people take it more seriously than if they'd just handed someone $xyz in a back alley and that were the end of it.
I'm not really sure what kind of information you'd need to seek out to test any of these ideas though! Of course, for practical purposes, while it's helpful to know why the laws work, what's most important is that they do.
-Morgan.
I don't remember if the study actually said that there was a greater effect on mass shootings than there was on violent crimes against individuals, but there was a side note about how statistically speaking the mass shooter is far more likely to face armed opposition than the individual-targeting criminal. Which makes me think that the effects you're suggesting would probably have more impact on the latter than the former, and if there is a discrepancy that could explain it.
Another possible psychological factor is that acquiring a gun legally tends to require proof of some kind of training, which is likely to make people take it more seriously than if they'd just handed someone $xyz in a back alley and that were the end of it.
I'm not really sure what kind of information you'd need to seek out to test any of these ideas though! Of course, for practical purposes, while it's helpful to know why the laws work, what's most important is that they do.
-Morgan.