NCJ Number
156509
Date Published
1995
Length
12 pages
Annotation
Various studies have been conducted in Finland to assess the extent of violence in the workplace, with work-related violence defined to encompass situations in which someone is victimized by threats or physical attacks.
Abstract
One study examined work-related violence in terms of escalating interaction, while another study explored violence at work based on victimization surveys. The latter study found that job-related victimization was much more common among men than among women and that violence encountered on the job was not very serious. Another study investigated job-related violence in two retail shops. Violent incidents were reconstructed in order to describe what types of threatening and concrete violent situations were encountered, what happened in violent situations, and why employees acted the way they did. In the two retail shops, threats and violence directed against sales persons were concentrated in situations where employees requested clients to do something or prevented them from doing something. Many sales persons thought risky situations developed through their own dynamics. Some respondents, however, said they were able to make choices and plan their actions in threatening situations. An additional study analyzed violence directed against social workers by clients, fear of violence, and ways in which social workers coped with violence. All social workers mentioned working in pairs and work community support as important ways to manage violence. Persons who had not experienced very serious violent situations underscored the importance of professional management methods, such as conversation skills, training, therapy, and decisionmaking techniques.