This study, commissioned by hunting and shooting organizations, examined how youth aged 8-17 perceive shooting and hunting and the role that peers have on their attitudes. There was more support for shooting than hunting among the respondents, with 52% having a strongly or moderately positive attitude toward shooting but only 38% having a positive attitude toward hunting. 46% of respondents had a strongly or moderately negative attitude toward hunting.

Excerpts from Executive Summary:

(Note that this report is written from a pro-hunting perspective)

• “While youth more commonly say they have a positive opinion of video games and mainstream sports like soccer, football, and baseball, considerable percentages also have a positive opinion of target shooting and, to a lesser extent, hunting.”
• “Opposition to hunting among youth comes primarily from a reluctance to cause pain to animals; opposition to target shooting, meanwhile, comes from a dislike of guns or from the perception that guns are dangerous.”
• “Regarding the right of others to hunt and shoot, youth are largely accepting and tolerant, even if they personally disagree with the activities.”
• If their friends were going shooting, 34% would actively encourage it, 28% would remain neutral, and 12% would actively discourage it.
• “A little less than half of youth have been invited to go hunting at some point, with about half of this figure actually going when invited…In terms of future invitations, about half of those who receive an invitation to go hunting are likely to go.”