Nature Of Workplace Violence Research Articles

Workplace Violence Against Domestic and Family Violence and Sexual Assault Workers: A Gendered, Settings-Based Approach

AbstractViolence against social workers and other social service practitioners is prevalent across countries and service delivery settings, often accepted as implicit in working with vulnerable clients. A corresponding scholarly focus on workplace violence, and the factors that affect it, is, however, still developing. This is particularly stark in the domestic and family violence (DFV) and sexual assault (SA) sectors. To address this gap, this article explores the extent and impact of practitioners’ exposure to workplace violence, and the mix of work and organisational factors that predict it. Analysis of survey data from Australian DFV and SA practitioners (N = 903) enables a focus on the two main sources of workplace violence: violence from clients and violence from colleagues. Both types of violence were found to be prevalent, gendered and associated with emotional strain and intention to leave. We argue that in DFV and SA sectors, which respond to multiple forms of gendered violence, understanding the multifaceted nature of workplace violence, and the structural arrangements that underpin it, is necessary for planning strategies to prevent and address it.

Victim/survivors of crime in the workplace: interactions between workplace injuries and criminal injuries compensation and financial assistance

Bowie identified a typology of workplace violence which features four broad categories: namely, ‘intrusive’, ‘consumer-related’, ‘relationship-related’ and ‘organisational’ violence. Identifying the form of workplace violence provides an insight into the likelihood and nature of workplace violence and consequently informs the potential for legal proceedings against employers or others. This article explores the typology of workplace injuries as proposed by Bowie and considers the relationship between criminal injuries compensation and victim/survivors financial assistance schemes and workplace injuries. In considering this relationship, it also reflects on the gendered nature of some forms of workplace violence.

Determine and compare the viewpoints of nurses, patients and their relatives to workplace violence against nurses.

The present study aims to assess the perception of nurses, patients and their relatives regarding the nature of workplace violence against nurses. Workplace violence adversely affects the health, well-being and safety of nurses and the quality of nursing care. In the present descriptive comparative study, the nature of violence was assessed using a modified and validated International Labor Office, the International Council of Nurses, World Health Organization, and Public Services International Questionnaire. Nurses, patients and relatives reported verbal abuse as the most common and sexual violence as the least common type of violence against nurses. Nurses mostly blamed factors associated with patients and their relatives as the cause of violence, whereas patients and their relatives blamed social factors. This study shows that violence is significantly prevalent in clinical settings, but its nature is differently perceived by nurses, patients and their relatives. This phenomenon requires further studies because knowledge of the causes of this difference could help to reduce and control violence. It is necessary that nursing managers inform nurses about protocols for reporting all such cases in order to collect information, and based on a clear procedure, actively pursue reported cases and take the necessary measures to prevent violence against nurses.

Report on the 2011 New Zealand Workplace Violence Survey

International studies continue to highlight the extent of workplace violence and its impact on employees and organizations. Despite a number of high profile incidents of workplace violence in New Zealand in recent years, there has been little work to establish the nature and extent of workplace violence in New Zealand. The present study aimed to provide a baseline picture of the extent and nature of the workplace violence problem in a sample of New Zealand organizations as a first step to developing an annual workplace violence survey that can assist government and industry in monitoring the workplace violence problem. The survey also sought to identify key areas of risk, and develop interventions that target these areas. Some 96 organizations responded to the on-line 2011 Workplace Violence Survey, representing over 76,000 New Zealand employees (approx. 4% of the employed workforce). The survey respondent was most frequently the organization’s health and safety manager, advisor or coordinator.Just over one-half of the organizations participating in the study reported cases of workplace violence, with a roughly even split between physical assault and property-related violence. A total of nearly 2500 cases of workplace violence were reported in 2009 by the 96 organizations participating in the survey. Highest incidence of workplace violence was reported for the ‘attempted assault’ categories, while a total of 436 cases involved some form of physical injury (18% of all reported cases). Respondents reported a total of 175 lost time and/or hospitalization cases. Five hundred and seventy two days of lost time directly attributable to violence were reported across the survey which represented 2.3% of lost time from all forms of injury and ill-health. The incidence rate for all violence cases (32.3 per 1000 employees) is very high compared to internationally reported rates. Highest violence incidence rates and lost time were reported for organizations from the health sector.Health organizations rated patients, customers/clients, and family members as sources of violence of particularly high importance, while in education, patients and students were highest rated. Although workplace violence is often represented as being about co-worker aggression, co-workers were highest rated for just two sectors: manufacturing and professional, scientific and technical services.Highest risk factor ratings were reported for interpersonal factors. Specific factors with highest mean ratings were related to exposure to unstable persons, including: alcohol and drug use, prejudice and/or harassment, and mental and physical instability/distress. Interestingly, workloads and time pressure also received relatively high ratings, suggesting work-related stress increases the perceived risk of violence in the workplace.The survey also identified the measures currently used by participating organizations. While respondents identified an impressive array of interventions, it is of concern that just 50% formally recognized violence as a hazard in the workplace. Further Healthy Work Group reports from this survey will focus on the perceptions of respondents on workplace violence risk, factors associated with violence for different industry sectors, and measures to prevent workplace violence.

Workplace violence against Iranian nurses working in emergency departments

Nurses working in emergency departments (EDs) are in the most danger of workplace violence (WPV) because of the critical nature of the wards. This study aimed to find the frequency and nature of physical and verbal WPV against Iranian nurses working in EDs. A cross-sectional study was carried out using consensus sampling of 196 bachelor's degree nurses working in 11 EDs of teaching hospitals in Tehran, Iran. The data were collected through the adapted version of a self-administered questionnaire developed by the International Labor Office/International Council of Nurses/World Health Organization/Public Services International on WPV in the health sector. The gathered data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The participants were mostly (89.1%) female and their work experiences (63.2%) in nursing were between 1 and 5 years; 19.7% of the nurses had faced physical violence. All of the physical violence incidents were without-weapon; 91.6% of the participants experienced verbal abuse during the past year. Patients' relatives were the most common source of violence. Dissatisfaction was reported on the way the incidents were handled. It is believed that finding the pattern and nature of WPV is the first step to develop suitable strategies to deal with the issue. Establishing WPV management teams and enacting appropriate laws can improve workplace safety for nurses and patients' care quality.

Violence: Part of the job for Australian nurses?

According to a recent Australian Institute of Criminology report (1999) the health industry is the most violent industry in Australia. In this paper the authors aim to highlight violence as an important professional issue for Australian nurses that is currently concealed as ‘part of the job’. National and international studies bring attention to the severity of the problem for nurses with a particular focus on Emergency nurses. Some of the issues identified and discussed include: increased waiting times and frustration; increasing use of weapons; inadequate systems of security; culture of silence; inadequate support for emergent mental health needs; lack of reporting; lack of institutional concern and systems of support, and; demands of triage nursing. The nature of workplace violence in Emergency Departments in New South Wales and South Australia will be explored based on the authors research. A research pathway to explore national impact and implications of violence for nurses and nursing practice in general will be outlined.

Workplace Violence in the United States: Are There Gender Differences?

This paper presents a literature analysis of the research that examines whether there are gender differences in the extent and nature of workplace violence in the United States. Overall, the results from the studies reviewed suggest that gender differences rather than gender similarities characterise workplace violence. Workplace incidents of violence committed against male and female employees were distinguished by (a) trends in the extent of workplace violence, (b) the type of violence, (c) work-related deaths, (d) the type of occupation, (e) job characteristics, (f) the victim-offender relationship, (g) the motives behind the violence, and (h) the impacts of the violence. Security and violence prevention issues and directions for the future are also discussed.