Handguns and hot sauce may have more to do with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln than one would think.
According to a new study at Knox College in Illinois, just handling a gun can make a person more aggressive.
And because of LB 454, come January, Nebraska citizens may be able to conceal that gun on their person.
Researchers tested 30 college males and found that men who were asked to assemble a large handgun had much higher testosterone levels than a group that assembled a board game.
They found out the handgun group was more aggressive by using two methods. First, researchers tested the male volunteers' saliva for testosterone. Next, they asked both groups to mix a drink containing hot sauce for another person. The handgun group used over three times as much hot sauce in their drinks.
Frank McAndrew, an associate professor of psychology at Knox College and co-author of the study, said males are programmed to respond to a threat.
"They do what needs to be done," McAndrew said. "What we found was even when there was no threat, their testosterone rose immensely just by handling a gun."
He said those students were so primed for conflict that they were disappointed when they were told no one would be tasting their drinks.
McAndrew said his study might not have a negative effect on the concealed weapon issue in Nebraska. He said eventually, after handling or carrying a firearm every day, the aggression could wear off.
"This study was done with students who had never handled a gun before," he said. "That was a huge factor in our study."
David DiLillo, an associate professor of psychology at UNL, related the aggression study to Ivan Pavlov's study with dogs salivating over the sound of a bell. He said those dogs so often associated the sound with food that they eventually would salivate at the sound.
In this society, guns are affiliated with violence, so the sight or handling of a gun could trigger aggression. So, like dogs salivating over a bell, DiLillo said, men would become aggressive while handling a gun for the first time.
Also, as in Pavlov's study, that association eventually could die out, but DiLillo said it would be difficult.
"Guns are so pervasive in our society," he said. "If they were eventually associated with non-violence and non-aggression, it could change. Maybe it would just wear off after awhile."
State Sen. Jeanne Combs of Milligan, a member of the National Rifle Association, sponsored LB 454, which eventually was signed into law by Gov. Dave Heineman.
"To me, the most basic right of a citizen in a free society is to defend themselves and their families," Combs said. "The one constant among those who would harm us is superiority of some kind over their victims."
She said there are only two states left in the country without some laws allowing concealed weapons. The act of getting a permit to carry a concealed weapon would not be an easy task, however. People who apply must take a safety training class, among other steps.
Sgt. 1st Class Guillermo Rivas, an instructor of military science at UNL, said he does see a certain excitement when students first go to the shooting range, although he wouldn't classify it as aggression.
Before they ever get to shoot their weapon, students learn extensive information about it, as well as how to put it together and take it apart.
Also, he said, every three or four students on the shooting range is watched over by a safety guard to ensure the students don't point their guns at anything but the target.
"From day one it is stressed - the importance of being responsible with the gun," Rivas said. "You always keep your finger off the trigger unless you intend to shoot."
