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Yes.
The definition of mass shootings varies, but research has found the U.S. has the most.
Reasons include high gun ownership, “cultural factors like individualism and fame-seeking, sensationalized media coverage, and gaps in mental health care and law enforcement,” said James Densley of the Violence Prevention Project Research Center.
According to two peer-reviewed studies:
U.S. mass shootings accounted for 73% of all incidents and 62% of all fatalities in developed countries from 1998–2019.
That study’s author wrote in February there were 109 U.S. mass shootings from 2000-2022 and 35 in comparable countries. The U.S. accounted for 33% of the population of the 36 countries, but 76% of the incidents and 70% of victim fatalities.
The U.S. had 30.8% of all mass shooters from 1966–2012, despite having less than 5% of the world’s population.
Democratic U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan made the U.S. claim after a mass school shooting Dec. 16 in Madison, Wisconsin, which he represents.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
- International Journal of Comparative and Applied Criminal Justice Global mass shootings: comparing the United States against developed and developing countries
- James Densley, Violence Prevention Project Research Center deputy director Email, Dec. 19, 2024
- Dom Salvia Show Mark Pocan interview
- Rockefeller Institute of Government Public Mass Shootings Around the World: Prevalence, Context, and Prevention
- Econ Journal Watch The Importance of Analyzing Public Mass Shooters Separately from Other Attackers When Estimating the Prevalence of Their Behavior Worldwide
- Jaclyn Schildkraut, executive director, Regional Gun Violence Research Consortium Email, Dec. 20, 2024
- CNN How US gun culture stacks up with the world
- Washington Post Fact Checker Does the U.S. lead the world in mass shootings?
- USA Today Fact check: Comparison of school shootings in the US, other countries uses old data
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