Abstract
Workplace violence is a growing social problem that has many negative consequences. The workplace can provide an atmosphere of both physical violence and verbal aggression.
A perceived violence climate can be reduced if the management exercises control and provides ways to eliminate violence and verbal aggression.
This can be done with the institution of policies and procedures that deal with violence, by providing training on avoidance and management of violence, and through good examples provided by supervisors and managers.
Examples of these techniques include methods of reporting and the formal and informal announcements that violence and other forms of verbal abuse and aggression are not tolerated in the work environment, or even outside of the workplace.
This study will delve into the definitions, causes and outcomes of workplace violence, and will provide recommendations on how to avoid and eradicate this social malady.
Introduction
Workplace violence is a growing social problem and is recognized as “a critical safety and health hazard” (Chenier, 1998, p. 558).Injury caused by accidents and violence in the work environment have been regarded as a significant social problem.
Healthcare providers particularly nurses are the most common victims of workplace violence (Di Martino, 2002; Henderson 2003 as cited in Chapman et al., 2010).
As an outcome of workplace violence, some leave the profession earlier than expected (Farrell et al., 2006 as cited in Chapman et al., p. 186) but many embrace their job and care for patients and they have to take the risk of being a continual victim by patients who are the most common perpetrators of workplace violence.
Some patients are bullies and nurses can do nothing to defend themselves (Chapman et al., p. 186).
WPV threatens the health of workers who succumb to stress, depression, and absenteeism. Weng-Chin et al. (2010) posit that this trend can lead to shortage of health workers and undermine health services in urban and rural areas.
Psychiatric wards and departments are seen as the most frequent places for WPV, particularly physical violence, and nurses are an easy prey.
Some of the nurses feel that WPV is a part of their job, but even then they feel helpless and incompetent in their job because they are hurt physically and emotionally. Nurse-victims react by avoiding patients, which can disrupt their job of providing health to psychiatric patients (Wen-Ching et al., 2010).
Statement of the problem and sub-problems
In the United States, there are as many as 2 million workplace violent incidents recorded annually; there were an estimated 16 million recorded in 1993 for verbal aggression, and in 1992, 15.1% accounted for violent crimes occurring in the workplace (VandenBos & Bulatao, 1996 as cited in Spector et al., p. 119).
Many organizations and managements do not consider this as a serious problem, making the situation more difficult to handle in the long term. Some perpetrators of WPV are former victims themselves and they apply and use the same tactic from what they experienced before.
Victims exhibit deviant responses as a result of a WPV event; the relationship between workers, who are victim or perpetrator in this relationship, affects the deviant reactions.
This can be explained by way of two theories: belongingness (Baumeister & Leary, 1995 as cited in Hershcovis et al., 2012, p. 2) and “the group value model” (Lind & Tyler, 1988 as cited in Hershcovis et al., p. 2).
The study of Herscovis et al. (2012) in examining the effects of workplace aggression went farther than the traditional research which analyzed aggression without taking into consideration the circumstance of the “specific relationship” wherein the event occurred.
The understanding of the co-worker or supervisor-subordinate relationship is crucial to determining how one might react to an unusual interaction within the relationship.
Hypothesis
Workplace violence is present in many areas of work, especially in the nursing profession; it affects the psychological and physical well-being of the victim. Nurse-victims leave work earlier than expected, thus, there is a perceived shortage of health workers because of workplace violence.
Delimitations
This study will be limited to qualitative studies conducted in the past by authors and researchers on the subject of workplace violence. Qualitative research using a sample and questionnaires is not within the scope of this study; therefore it has many limitations as we have to rely on the studies of those authors.
A qualitative study will involve questionnaires and interviews to get a comparison of the literature and the responses of the participants.
Although we find vast sources for the literature review, we can only provide an analysis from the different articles but not a comparison between the literature and our own qualitative research. In lieu of this, it is significant that a literature review be accompanied with a qualitative research.
Definition of terms
Depression
Depression and anxiety have caused mortality and are related with “quality of life and social functioning” (Strine et al., 2008), p. 1383).
One of the major outcomes of workplace violence is depression which complicates into low physical, mental and psychological well-being.
WPV victims experience psychological and somatic effects, such as depression, anxiety, gastrointestinal problems, including sleep deprivation (Hogh & Viitasara, 2005 as cited in Niven et al., 2013, p. 68).
Workplace violence (WPV)
Workplace violence or workplace aggression refers to acts that harm the psychological, mental, or physical well-being of individuals in the work environment (Fujishiro, Gee, & de Castro, 2011).
Workplace aggression is defined by Hershcovis et al. (2012) as “a psychological form of mistreatment that involves negative acts perpetrated against organizational members that victims are motivated to avoid” (Neuman & Baron, 2005 as cited in Herscovis et al., 2012, p. 2).
This definition also refers to severe forms of ill treatment or bullying, or lower forms of mistreatment. Workplace violence can be “high-intensity, severe behavior” (Herscovis, 2011 as cited in Niven et al., 2013, p. 68) aimed at fellow employees and with intent to harm, psychologically or physically.
Forms of aggression include “abusive supervision, bullying, incivility, and social undermining” (Hershcovis et al., 2012, p. 2).
Workplace deviance
Workplace aggression is also associated with workplace deviance; this is defined as “purposeful behavior that violates organizational norms and is intended to harm the organization, its members, or both” (Bennett & Robinson, 2000 as cited in Hershcovis et al., 2012, p. 1).
Assumptions
Organizations should be able to deal with this kind of violence and must institute policies and programs to deal and eradicate workplace violence.
This behavior causes depression on the part of the victims. It is a serious problem in the U.S. and many parts of the world that if they are not properly addressed, they may cause more problems and more victims.
Importance of the study
This study will provide an in-depth analysis of workplace violence and slight or severe forms of violence in the workplace environment. This is useful and informative for psychology students but also to individual workers and employees who experience workplace aggression and mistreatment by their supervisors.
One question that will acquire an answer from the literature is: How should we deal with workplace violence and other forms of physical abuse in the workplace if the perpetrators are our very own supervisors or coworkers?
Literature Review
Some aspects of work are associated with exposure to violence. LeBlanc and Kelloway (2002 as cited in Spector et al., 2007) provided a compilation of 22 situations identified as factors related with exposure to violence, based on their research and results of a study.
Some of these were tasks that needed exercising physical control over others, “having contact with people on medication, or having to care for others” (Spector et al., 2007, p. 119). A study revealed that nurses are the second most vulnerable victims of WPV; police personnel are the first (Spector et al., p. 119).
Theories in understanding WPV effects
One dominant theory is known as stressor-strain model (Lazarus et al., 1985 as cited in Niven et al., 2013) which states that when people experience WPV, an objective stressor, they try to discern and appraise what happened to them by way of understanding the stressor and their own personal coping mechanism.
It can become an activated stress in the person, who contemplates the negative experience and feels the “acute affective and physiological arousal (e.g., unpleasant affect, sympathetic nervous system activation)” (Niven et al., 2013, p. 69).
The activation process of stress appraisal may result into chronic strain symptoms. This internal activity demonstrates the consequences of WPV by way of stress appraisals.
Another theory is the response styles theory (Nolen-Hoeksema, 1991 as cited in Niven et al., 2013) which has been used even in other traumatic experiences. The theory states that an individual’s way of responding to a traumatic event is a strong predictor of the effects of that traumatic incident.
The theory focuses on rumination, which are about “negative evaluative thoughts about the self” (Nolen-Hoeksema, Wisco & Lyubomirsky, 2008 as cited in Niven et al., 2013, p. 69).
Drawing from one example in Niven et al.’s study, a WPV victim may ruminate about recent experience and continue to blame himself/herself as the cause of the WPV event. The victim will continue to think of his/her faults and the outcomes of such an experience will affect other areas of his/her life.
Niven et al. (2013) states that rumination “can be seen as a relatively stable response style … such that certain people are particularly prone to engaging in ruminative thinking” (Nolen-Hoeksema, Morrow & Fredrickson, 1993 as cited in Niven et al., 2013, p. 69).
Ruminative thinking affects an individual’s coping mechanism after a WPV experience for three reasons: it hastens negative thoughts and emotions about the experience; ruminative thoughts obstruct our mind’s effective problem skills and “mood regulation” (Nolen-Hoeksema et al., 2008 as cited in Niven et al., p. 69); and ruminative thoughts stimulate the mind to generalizing ideas (Niven et al., 2013).
Rumination exacerbates WPV experience as a stressor and those who do not ruminate are able to recover quickly. The above explanation tells that response styles theory is about “the negative effects of stressful events” which arise as a result of ruminative thinking (Niven et al., 2013, p. 70).
Belongingness theory tells us that humans need to belong (Baumeister & Leary, 1995 as cited in Hershcovis et al., 2012); this is a fundamental need that must be met.
Hershcovis and colleagues explained it this way: “individuals are driven to form, maintain, and resist the dissolution of non-aversive, stable, and enduring interpersonal relationships, and a lack of such relationships will result in negative emotional, cognitive, and health-related outcomes” (p. 2).
According to Ferris et al. (in press), interpersonal injustice affects belongingness and impacts on victim’s self-esteem and a higher level of deviance. Individuals who feel rejected in society would consider any information as hostile and may threaten aggression.
Gouldner (1960 as cited in Herscovis et al., p. 2) indicated that in social interaction, there are people who find it an obligation to reciprocate the behavior that they receive.
Thus, victims of WPV feel obliged to reciprocate what they have received, and so victims become perpetrators. The group value model refers to the way superiors treat their subordinates, which influences prospective perpetrators.
Power may be exercised by the perpetrator who can be a supervisor or superior to the victim. Power refers to the ability to pressure others to act “through reward and punishment” (Keltner, Gruenfeld, & Anderson, 2003 as cited in Hershcovis et al., 2012, p. 3).
Supervisors or employees who have formal power are authorized “to grant promotions, assign tasks, allocate resources, and terminate employment” (Keltner et al., 2003 as cited in Herscovis et al., p. 3).
Consequences of WPV
Exposure to violence and verbal aggression results in “poor physical and emotional well-being” (LeBlanc & Kelloway, 2002 as cited in Spector et al., 2007, p. 119).
Likewise, Schat and Kelloway (2002 as cited in Spector et al., p. 119) also noted the relation between a combined violence and verbal aggression exposure and both forms of well-being, but the relationship is stronger if the offense is committed by a co-worker than by a member of the public.
An inconsistency in the literature was noted by Barling, Rogers, and Kelloway (2001 as cited in Spector et al., 2007) who found that verbal aggression was related to psychological factors and not violence.
Support by coworkers can reduce the impact of the psychological strain (Schat and Kelloway, 2003 as cited in Spector et al., p. 119).
Most victims of WPV become perpetrators. A research found that individuals’ psychological adjustment relies on “their ability to cognitively process the experience, develop strategies to help them understand, and then adapt themselves in some way” (Grossman et al., 2000 as cited in Chapman et al., 2010, p. 187).
Victims who successfully cope with workplace violence are the ones who are able to find meaning to such negative events in their lives (Fjelland et al., 2007 as cited in Chapman et al., p. 187).
Finding meaning in such negative situations can be associated with “positive psychological health outcomes” (Draucker, 2001 as cited in Chapman, p. 187).
In a study by Luck et al. (2007 as cited in Chapman, p. 187) on the impact of WPV on a group of participants in an Australian emergency department, they found that the participants judged WPV situations according to their way of personalizing the WPV event; by the presence of alleviating factors; and the reasons why the perpetrator was admitted at the emergency department (Chapman et al., 2010).
The study of Luck et al. (2007) focused on the nurses’ cognitive process, i.e. the nurses’ search for meaning. Researchers have assumed that violence is present in the ED and psychiatric department and that it is not present in other areas of work. (Chapman et al., 2010)
Support from the management
A favorable workplace environment should emphasize on how employees should behave that can provide a wholesome relationship with other employees, and encourages them to work for the common good and for the organization, rather than doing something that may hurt fellow employees.
Employees should “behave in a more civil manner so that minor rudeness does not escalate into more serious interpersonal encounters” (Pearson, Andersson, & Porath, 2005 as cited in Spector et al., 2007, p. 120).
Research Methodology
Data needed and means of data acquisition
This will require data from websites and databases on studies and researches conducted on the subjects of workplace aggression, depression, workplace violence and other forms of psychological and physical abuse in the work environment.
The useful databases are EBSCOHost, ProQuest, and other online databases, but also including physical library books and journals.
Research methods
This research will use literature review and case study as research methods. Literature review is a way of analyzing qualitative results from past studies of authors and experts on the subject of workplace violence, aggression, depression and other workplace violent events.
Through literature review, we will know the qualitative findings of significant studies, correlate the different studies, and provide new findings and conclusions. In the literature review, we include studies conducted on a certain period, the number of participants involved in the studies, and the conclusions and recommendations.
Specific data treatment for each sub-problem
There are many victims of WPV in various areas of work and work environment. Victims react to a WPV event and each event is different and will have to be treated differently. WPV studies must have different emphases and focus, e.g., there are studies that focus on nurses as victims, or students as victims.
The same can be applied with the perpetrators: perpetrators can be supervisors, patients, or co-employes. How researchers should deal with and determine solutions or treatment of victims must have different techniques and should be able to sort out the vast sources in the literature.
Outline of proposed study
The study shall have the following outline:
- Chapter 1: Introduction
- Aims and objectives
- Hypotheses
- Importance of the study
- Delimitations
- Chapter 2: Literature Review
- Definition of terms
- Theories
- Cast studies
- Chapter 3: Methodology
- Chapter 4: Discussion
- Chapter 5: Conclusion/Recommendations
Steps
This study will first focus on researching from the vast databases articles and journals on workplace violence. This is a wide literature search as the subject is a broad one.
As stated, workplace violence is present in many areas of work; therefore, victims have different orientation and culture, and also different organizational culture.
References
Chapman, R., Styles, I., Perry, L., & Combs, S. (2010). Nurses’ experience of adjusting to workplace violence: A theory of adaptation. International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, 19(1), 186-194. doi: 10.1111/j.1447-0349.2009.00663.x
Chenier, E. (1998). The workplace: A battleground for violence. Public Personnel Management, 27(4), 557-568. Web.
Fujishiro, K., Gee, G., & de Castro, A. (2011). Associations of workplace aggression with work-related well-being among nurses in the Philippines. American Journal of Public Health, 101(5), 861-867. Web.
Hershcovis, M., Reich, T., Parker, S., & Bozeman, J. (2012). The relationship between workplace aggression and target deviant behavior: The moderating roles and task interdependence. Work & Stress, 26(1), 1-20.
Niven, K., Sprigg, C., Armitage, C., & Satchwell, A. (2013). Ruminative thinking exacerbates the negative effects of workplace violence. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 86(1), 67-84. doi: 10.1111/j.2044-8325.2012.02066.x
Spector, P., Coulter, M., Stockwell, H., & Matz, W. (2007). Perceived violence climate: A new construct and its relationship to workplace physical violence and verbal aggression, and their potential consequences. Work & Stress, 21(2), 117-130.
Strine, T., Mokdad, A., Balluz, L., Gonzales, O., Crider, R., Berry, J., & Kroenke, K. (2008). Depression and anxiety in the United States: Findings from the 2006 behavioral risk factor surveillance system. Psychiatric Services, 59(12), 1383-1390. Web.
Wen-Ching, C., Chuan-Ju, H., Jing-Shiang, H., & Chiao-Chicy, C. (2010). The relationship of health-related quality of life to workplace physical violence against nurses by psychiatric patients. Quality of Life Research, 19(8), 1155-1161.