NCJ Number
69701
Journal
Journal of Security Administration Volume: 3 Issue: 1 Dated: (June 1980) Pages: 42-47
Date Published
1980
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This self-report study of on-the-job behavior documents rates of employee violence and identifies reliable attitudinal correlates of aggressive behavior for screening purposes.
Abstract
Thirty-nine employees (64 percent female; 34 percent male) completed the Personnel Security Inventory, form 6, and the Lie Scale from the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (used to ensure honest reporting). An anonymous, open-ended questionnaire determined the number of arguments with supervisors, fellow employees, and customers, and the incident of physical assault on the job. The major findings of this study showed that the violence attitude scores significantly correlated with both the argument factor scores and the physical assault factor scores. Thus, a measure of an employee's tolerance for violence is a statistically reliable predictor of employee on-the-job aggression. These findings are highly consistent with and extend previous research on the relationship between attitudes and violence admissions. These statistically significant results show that it is possible for personnel managers and security administrators to use psychological tests to identify and screen out job applicants who are most likely to engage in disruptive and costly violence on the job. Job applicants with a cognitive predisposition to violence can still be hired, but selective placement away from customer contact and frustrating job demands can possible deter unexpected adverse emotion flare-ups. Nine footnotes are appended.