Seeking Clarity in a Linguistic Fog: Moderators of the Workplace Aggression-Strain Relationship

Abstract

This study used cross-sectional data from 579 nurses to examine main and interaction effects of workplace aggression and theoretical nuances on employee strain. Perceived intensity of aggression and intention attributions by the target, power of the perpetrator in relation to the target, and perceived visibility of aggression by the target all served to exacerbate various relationships of workplace aggression with depression, physical symptoms, job satisfaction, and accidental contagious disease exposure. Three-way interactions reveal that these moderators may have complex roles in workplace aggression–strain research. This research supports a model where workplace aggression and its distinct moderators jointly impact employee strain and provide clarity to questions left unanswered due to term fragmentation and measurement overlap that currently obscure how mechanisms underlying workplace aggression constructs impact employee strains.