‘Most Violence Is Not Caused by Mental Illness’

<p>After a series of deadly mass shootings in the United States, the National Rifle Association and some Republican leaders and conservatives are pointing to mental illness.</p><p>This approach raises a question: How can the mental health system stop gun violence when mental illness is so rarely the cause of it?</p><p>We revisit a conversation from 2018 with a psychiatrist who is wrestling with that challenge.</p><p>Guest: <a href="https://health.ucdavis.edu/team/psychiatry/22092/amy-barnhorst---psychiatry-sacramento?smid=pc-thedaily">Dr. Amy Barnhorst</a>, the vice chairwoman of community psychiatry at the University of California, Davis. </p><p>Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/newsletters/the-daily?module=inline">subscribe to our newsletter</a>. </p><p>Background reading: </p><ul><li>Many Republicans opposed to more gun control have called instead for investing in mental health programs, increasing funding for law enforcement and bolstering security at schools. Many Democrats say<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/06/us/mayors-mass-shootings-gun-control.html"> they are missing the point</a>.</li></ul><p>For more information on today’s episode, visit <a href="http://nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily">nytimes.com/thedaily</a>. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. </p>