A new study finds that 20 to 30 percent of mass killings and school shootings inspire similar violent attacks for an average of 13 days after the initial tragedy, NBC News reported. On average, mass shootings occur about once every two weeks in the United States and school shootings happen about once a month, according to researchers at Arizona State University and Northeastern Illinois University. The study titled “Contagion in Mass Killings and School Shootings, published Thursday in the journal PLOS ONE, also found mass shootings were significantly higher in states with a high rate of gun ownership. Previous research has found that media reports of suicides and homicides can be contagious among at-risk individuals, “subsequently increase the incidence of similar events.” Researchers believe that national media coverage of a mass shooting might can potentially do the same thing, but at a larger scale," Towers said.
