Friday, June 3, 2016

Cross Examining Psych Doctors - Tip #33-Workplace Violence

Violence in the workplace has many faces and is the cause of a very large number of psychiatric claims in the workers’ compensation and personal injury arenas.  In this regard, workplace violence is defined as “physical assaults or threats of assault directed towards employees” whereas aggression is a more general term that is defined as “behavior that is intended to physically or psychologically harm an individual.”  
Research has shown that in any given year, anywhere from 1% to 5% of employees are victims of a physical assault at work, while anywhere from 9% to 70% of employees are the victim of nonphysical aggression in the workplace, such as verbal abuse, emotional abuse, and/or sexual harassment (Barling, J., Dupre, K. E., & Kelloway, E. K. (2009). Predicting workplace aggression and violence. Annual Review of Psychology, 671-692).  Worse yet, according to a 2011 report by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), workplace homicide accounts for 11% of all fatal workplace injuries in the United States.  In fact, the leading cause of workplace death for women in the United States is homicide.  the rates of violence across numerous occupations are highly similar (e.g., LeBlanc, M. M., & Kelloway, E. K. Predictors and outcomes of workplace violence and aggression. Journal of Applied Psychology, 2002, 87, 444-453).  Believe it or not, a coal miner, a police officer and a university professor have approximately the same chance of being physically or non-physically assaulted by a coworker. 
From a risk management point of view, how can individuals be identified who are likely to act out violently?  One obvious recommendation is to avoid hiring individuals who either have a history of acting out or possess characteristics that are associated with behaving violently.  Depending on the employer’s Human Resources budget, it may be reasonable to do background checks on prospective employees or even pay for a pre-employment psychological evaluation.  Another loss-preventative measure is to continually assess employees for their potential to act out and to provide counseling programs for individuals who show characteristics likely to lead to workplace violence, helping them deal with their personal problems without compromising the organization. 
In developing a strategy to reduce workplace violence, it is often cost effective to hire specialists in industrial-organizational psychology.  These individuals can assist any employer in selecting workers who are less likely to perpetrate or to be the “victims” of violence, can set up programs to monitor for the warning signs of aversive events, and are able to provide plans for taking counter measures to defuse situations. 

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