The first thing that came to mind when I read the research news was, "Well, duh. Thank you, Captain Obvious."
The anti-Constitutionalists put every aspect of guns and crime under a microscope for two reasons:
1. Another 'study' means more research funding, another grant to apply for, another paper for professional publication. It could be something that actually meant a difference to society, such as clarifying the relationship between generational dependence on public assistance and parental involvement in adolescent educational achievement, or it could be another study about some connection between guns and societal problems. Since the AMA is anti-gun ( https://www.mdmag.com/medical-news/d...olution-passes ) anti-gun research fits their agenda and garners peer approval.
2. More anti-gun research provides more talking points for anti-Constitutionalists to use when they trot out their next nuance of 'reasonable' gun control. The research protocols might be flawed, the findings suspect or even against them -- it doesn't matter. All they need is something they can spin to fit their need.
Disarmament won't be a single bold stroke, a la United Kingdom, Canada, Australia. It will be a series of nips and whittles, laws that force tough choices on gun owners, and ongoing efforts by anti-Constitutionalists to undermine public support for the 2nd Amendment.