Effects of prevention interventions on violence in the workplace: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Violence in the workplace represents a pressing social problem, drawing attention to the need for both public and private prevention interventions. Workplace violence and workplace violence prevention serve as a crucial topic globally, given the context of violence and victimization in the workplace across a range of industries, and in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. The objective of this article is to carry out a systematic review and meta-analysis of the effects of the full range of approaches to prevent workplace violence. Following PRISMA guidelines, this review uses rigorous criteria for the inclusion of studies, comprehensive search strategies to identify eligible studies, and a detailed protocol for coding study characteristics. Meta-analytic techniques are used to assess the impact of prevention interventions (at the employee- and organizational-levels) on workplace violence. Ten studies met the inclusion criteria. The weighted mean effect sizes for employee and organizational-level studies were positive and moderate, yet non-significant: d = 0.50 (95% CI = −0.04, 1.05) and d = 0.22 (95% CI = −0.62, 1.07), respectively. Variability of intervention modalities, the promising nature of some prevention interventions, and the need for consideration of a broader range of measures of workplace violence offer some directions for future research to help inform policy and practice.