Understanding The Multi-Level Enablers & Inhibitors That Create, Facilitate & Reduce Workplace Violence

Understanding The Multi-Level Enablers & Inhibitors That Create, Facilitate & Reduce Workplace Violence Presented by: Prof. Searle Date: 27 April 2022 The Bandura's Mechanisms of Moral Disengage - - Collective moral disengagement • Moral justification • Advantageous comparison • Euphemistic labelling • Minimizing, ignoring, misconstruing the consequences • Dehumanizing Attribution of blame • Displacement of responsibility • Diffusion of responsibility Misconduct a form of employee deviance, a "voluntary behavior that violates significant organizational norms and in so doing threatens the well-being of an organization, its members, or both." Robinson & Bennett 1995 Taxonomy For Work-Based Deviance Organization Minor PRODUCTION DEVIANCE Interpersonal Intentional non-compliance Stealing from the with how work is done organisation POLITICAL DEVIANCE PERSONAL AGGRESSION Blaming colleagues Violation & Its Impact On Health - Trust Severe PROPERTY DEVIANCE Sexual misconduct Stealing from others - Confidence - Misconduct? • Undermines professional & institutional Competence & integrity Professional Standards Authority - 6714 cases - 289 cases - 232 proven cases • 81 Doctors (35%) • 101 Nurses (44%) • 50 Allied Professions (22%) - NHS staff surveys from some of the workplaces - Two stage analysis • Coding - personal, BEH, environment • Thematic analysis Bandura's – Social Cognitive Framework – Personal - - Literature • Values, beliefs, goals • Gender dimension – tends - to be men • Power & proclivity • Sanction non traditional gender • Means of control & power Findings • Doctors - 70% multiple offenses • Nurse - 75% - no midwives • Allied Health Professionals - 88% • Gender  Male - 88% - Physician 100%  Female were preparators - other prof. • Targets  Patients - 64%  Women - 96% Bandura's – Social Cognitive Framework – Behavioral - Literature • Interpersonal violence  "unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature", and when directed at co-workers it "unreasonably interferes with an individual's work performance, or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment" (Pina, Gannon, & Saunders, 2009: 127). • Goal directed BEH - recidivism • Covert actions • Response to  Negative affect  Retaliation to injustice - sex spurned advances  Status and image - big man - Findings • Moral disengagement higher among men • Mitigating factors offered  Cultural background  Personal circumstances - alcohol & drugs • Greater moral disengagement for colleague cases  Attributing blame  . Diffusing responsibility Bandura's – Social Cognitive Framework – Environmental - Literature • Situation allows proclivities to be enacted – hurdles  Imposed o Limited agency - but can change how it is perceived  Selected o Career choice o Social groups - breaks & out of work o Type of work - agency o Targets  Created o Fostered in key types of org. culture - Findings • Hot spot workplaces  Hospital - 32%  Mental health -20%  GP-9% - patient target dominate  Clinics-7%  Ambulance - 5% • These workplaces - signify more multiple offenses • Workplace climate  Long working hours  Higher levels workplace violence  Low level diversity, equality & inclusion training • Moral mindsets  Longer hours - greater levels MD - Victim blaming Bandura's – Social Cognitive Framework – Inhibitors – Self Evaluation - Inhibited by personal reflexive struggle - Impeded by long hours - self-regulation reduced (DeWall et al, 2007) - Defensive aggression - fear- and anxiety-related violence - Negative affect from adverse context • MD important means to preserve self-identity • Results...  More male activity  Shift in detrimental practices - Euphemistic labeling  Displace responsibility  Diminish consequences - Denial  Target blaming Bandura's – Social Cognitive Framework – Inhibitors – Social Sanctions - Social norm creation - reduce sanctions - Banter climates - subversive • Use of humor - Diffuse responsibility - Normalize transgressive actions - Subvert social sanctions against those NOT engaging in transgressions Bandura's – Social Cognitive Framework – Inhibitors – Legal Sanctions - - Sanctions vary by profession • Removed from register permanently 118 cases (51%), • Suspension (27%), • Caution and restrictive practice (both 7%), • Nothing (3%), • Assorted other interim measures (6% in total). Multiple offenses – not always struck-off - 54% • Single offense - 44% • Multiple Patient targets -54% What Can We Do? - Training & values & norms - Target attention - Self- depleting - Sanctions - Upstanding - Hotspots - Environments Signify Roles Of Perpetrators % of total 1 BEH survey occasional sample Dept 2 0 manager Dept 2 staff 4 Dept 1 8 manager 1 type occasional 1 type more frequent Multiple types occasional Multiple types more frequent 0 0 0 0 0 8 0 0 4 12 0 0