Apply for a Research Grant

The California Firearm Violence Research Center (CA FVRC), a branch of the Centers for Violence Prevention, provides small and large grants to support rigorous and equitable research on the causes, consequences, and prevention of violence.

Transform Your Ideas into Meaningful Findings 

The UC Davis Centers for Violence Prevention are dedicated to growing the field of violence research. We do so in part by supporting external investigators through the California Firearm Violence Research Center (CA FVRC) research grant award program. 

CA FVRC grants support rigorous and equitable research on the causes, consequences, and prevention of violence and evaluations of policies and interventions that expand the evidence about what contributes to preventing violence and improving safety and equity outcomes.  

We welcome proposals to support quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods research projects on all forms of violence experienced by children, youth, and adults (e.g., community violence, intimate partner violence, mass shootings, political violence, or suicide). Proposals that involve authentic engagement with community partners are encouraged. 

All research funds are awarded on the basis of scientific merit as determined by an open, competitive peer review process that assures objectivity, consistency, and high quality.

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Congratulations to our 2024 grant recipients

 

Leveraging Natural Language Processing for Identifying Intimate Partner Violence using Unstructured Healthcare Record

Lisa Knowlton, M.D., M.P.H. and Lakshika Tennakoon, M.D., M.Phil., Ph.D. – Stanford University

This study aims to address challenges in identifying intimate partner violence (IPV) in healthcare settings. Existing methods lack consistency, contributing to underreporting. Stigma and fear silence victims, exacerbating the public health crisis. An urgently required scalable solution can empower healthcare professionals to identify and address IPV cases effectively.  

Exploring the Links: Group Gun Violence and Sex Trafficking and Exploitation in Oakland, CA

Rachel Locke, M.A. – University of San Diego, Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice 

This research will analyze the relationship between group-involved gun violence and sex trafficking and exploitation in Oakland, CA. This work will advance knowledge on intersecting points of harm, finding entry points to interrupt harmful pathways through engaging directly with a range of community partners.

Graduate Student Research: Using an Innovative Machine Learning Method to Investigate Gun Violence Exposure on Adolescents’ Developmental Outcomes at School

Siwei Liu, Ph.D. and Di Jody Zhou, Ph.D. Candidate – UC Davis  

This project aims to investigate the overall and heterogeneous impacts of community gun violence exposure on adolescents' social and behavioral functioning, utilizing an innovative machine learning method with the potential to provide actionable insights for developing targeted interventions and public health strategies to mitigate the adverse impacts of firearm violence.  

Previous Awards

CA FVRC awarded its first two rounds of funding in 2019 and 2020 to support research exploring the causes of firearm violence and evaluate strategies and interventions to reduce firearm violence. Projects ranged in size and scope, with small grants (<$10,000) in support of work to be conducted over one year and longer-term projects with awards of up to $75,000. Past grantees’ projects are listed below.

  • 2020 Grantees 
    UNITE: Understanding the Links Between Social Determinants and Firearm Violence in California Communities  
  • Rochelle Dicker, M.D. - UCLA, Division of General Surgery  
    This project aims to form a University of California trauma consortium, and to map fatal and non-fatal firearm injuries in trauma center catchment areas. We will link injuries with social determinants of health based on location of residence and injury location to understand vulnerable populations and root causes of violence. 
  • Advancing Peace: Credible Messengers & Community Gun Violence Reduction
  • Jason Corburn, Ph.D. - UC Berkeley, Institute of Urban and Regional Development  
    This proposal aims to understand how street outreach workers in Richmond, Sacramento and Stockton, California act as credible messengers to interrupt gun violence, mentor young people at the center of gun violence and sustain themselves while working for a community-based, firearm homicide reduction program called Advance Peace. Read about the findings here.
  • Pilot Testing the Lethality Assessment Program to Reduce Gun Related Intimate Partner Homicides in Los Angeles  
  • Jennifer Wagman, Ph.D., M.H.S. - UCLA, Jonathan and Karin Fielding School of Public Health  
    Gun-related intimate partner homicides (IPH) are on the rise, nationally and in Los Angeles. This project aims to adapt and pilot the Lethality Assessment Program in four Los Angeles Police Department divisions and use findings to develop a full-scale study to evaluate LAP’s impact on reducing IPH in Los Angeles. 
  • Exposure to Family Violence in Adolescence on Firearm Carrying in Young Adulthood: Sex-Stratified Multilevel Analyses Using Longitudinal Data from the Los Angeles Family and Neighborhood Survey (LAFANS)  
  • Anita Raj, Ph.D., M.S. - UC San Diego, Center on Gender Equity and Health 
    To expand the understanding of the etiology of firearm-related intimate partner violence, we propose secondary data analysis on a large sample of Los Angeles parent-child dyads and neighborhoods to examine the link between family violence and neighborhood context in adolescence on gun carrying in young adulthood.  
  • Development, Implementation, and Evaluation of a Firearm-Safety Counseling Module for Medical Students 
  • Gary N. Holland, M.D. - UCLA 
    Our project seeks to develop, implement, and evaluate an evidence-informed educational module designed to teach medical students how to counsel patients in the clinical setting about firearm-safety.
  • EMS Data Modeling to Identify Patients at High Risk for Firearm-Facilitated Suicide
  • Christopher Kahn, M.D., M.P.H., FAEMS - UC San Diego 
    Investigators will analyze nearly one million EMS patient encounters to determine if risk factors can be identified that are associated with later EMS encounters involving firearm-facilitated suicide. If identified, these pilot data will be used to support additional studies focused on creating a model for proactively identifying these high-risk persons.
  • Gun Safety: Starting the Conversation After Trauma  
  • Alana Beres, M.D., M.P.H. - UC Davis, Department of Surgery  
    Safe gun storage is associated with decreased firearm injuries. At our institution families of children presenting after firearm injuries received gun safety counseling in less than 5% of cases. We aim to increase gun safety discussions for patients presenting after gunshot injuries by providing an educational program to trauma care providers.

  • 2019 Grantees 

    Survey of Healthcare Providers and Trainees on Firearm Violence Education

  • Taylor Docter, M.D. - UC San Diego 
    Our project aims to investigate the current state of firearm violence education for medical professionals. We plan to survey California healthcare professionals to determine the amount and kind of training provided, the satisfaction with current training, interest in receiving additional training, and what barriers are seen to implementing this training.

  • Predicting Firearm Suicide Among Emergency Department Patients: A Statewide Longitudinal Study  

  • Sidra Goldman-Mellor, Ph.D. - UC Merced, Department of Public Health 
    This study will leverage linked emergency department and mortality data from California and recent innovations in machine learning to accomplish two important goals: (1) Quantify prospective firearm suicide rates among ED patients with key diagnostic and sociodemographic patterns, and (2) Generate predictive, interpretable models of individualized firearm suicide risk. Findings will provide benchmark data for healthcare systems implementing firearm suicide prevention plans and form the basis for a future clinical algorithm usable in ED practice. Read more about the findings here.

  • Overcoming the Great Gun Divide: Understanding the Application of Firearm Law and Direction for Future Law

  • Nicole Sherman, Ph.D. - CSU Chico, Department of Political Science 
    The proposed project will analyze how gun owners adhere to gun laws in a rural Californian county. This research will also explore what additional gun regulations gun owners would be willing to have implemented as to represent an acceptable compromise between gun control and gun rights and the possibility of new regulations to reduce gun violence. The purpose of this project is to identify gaps in current law application/enforcement and to consider future gun policy.

  • Fatal and Non-Fatal Use of Firearms by California Law Enforcement

  • Matthew Thompson, Ph.D. - UC Davis, Department of Sociology 
    In California 45% of all police use of force incidents included an officer’s use of a firearm in 2016-2017. This project investigates agency characteristics and policies as explanations of fatal and non-fatal firearm use by law enforcement agencies. With California’s new use of force data, the state is ready to lead the country in understanding police use of firearms. Findings of this project will inform policies and community understanding of this social issue.

  • The Landscape of Intimate Partner Violence Prevention Policy in Los Angeles

  • Michael Rodriguez, M.D. and Deborah Glik, M.D. - UCLA 
    This project aims to conduct key informant interviews with professionals to understand the use and implementation of Domestic Violence Restraining Order (DVRO) firearm restrictions in Los Angeles, California. Perspectives from professionals across a range of sectors will provide insight into the challenges associated with DVRO firearm restrictions and ways to strengthen policy implementation. Read more about the findings here.

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