Project:Sandbox

Perline and Goldschmidt [12] contend that the present definitions of workplace are descriptive and not based on motivation of the perpetrator. [12] Understanding the motivation underlying these crimes is important in developing preventative strategies. Perline & Goldschmidt define two types of workplace violence: 1) Object-focused workplace violence is violence that occurs to obtain some object, such as money, drugs, jewelry, etc., and 2) non-object-focused violence, which is emotionally based, and mostly associated with anger. Anger generally requires frustration and perceived injustice. Mitigating anger or perceived injustice will mitigate or prevent a violent episode. People can be angry without perpetrating violence. Whether or not anger results in violence depends on the potential perpetrator's focus. Eight different types of focus that can result in WPV have been identified. (Table 1) [12] Insert Table 1 about here Table 1. Shows eight different types of focus associated with workplace violence.

The anger-focus model: 1) characterizes WPV according to the focus of the perpetrator. (Note that the goal of a healthy focus is non-violent anger resolution); 2) allows for the gathering of separate statistics for object-focused crime and non-object-focused crime, and 3) shows that domestic violence, school shootings, terrorist activities, and violence that occurs in the workplace that is non-object related are all instances of non-object-focused violence and therefore are similarly motivated. Consequently, understanding the factors driving one type of non-object-focused violence should help us to develop strategies for mitigating the other types of non-object-focused violence. Thus, we can see that these crimes can be mitigated by reducing the frustration level of the potential perpetrator, reducing the level of the potential perpetrator's perceived injustice, or changing the focus the potential perpetrator to a healthy focus. [12] A very large percentage of non-object-focused perpetrators are either arrested, killed by police, or killed themselves after committing their violent act. If we consider suicide-by-cop, it has been suggested that somewhere between 25-50 percent of non-object-focused workplace homicides result in suicide. [13, 14]. Suicide is virtually unheard of following an object-focused crime, it just doesn't make sense.

Non-object-focused workplace violence is purposeful and is seldom if ever a spontaneous event. Figure 1 shows that the probability for violence increases as the risk level approaches the potential perpetrator's violence threshold. [12] Insert Figure 1 about here Figure 1. Probability of violence as a function of risk level.

Thirty risk factors and five stages have been identified. Fourteen risk factors are social & situational; twelve are psychological, and four are behavioral. The five stages of non-object-focused violence that have been identified are: 1) Anger 2) Focus 3) Pre-violence: a) Fantasy b) Rehearsal c) Preparation d) Victim denigration and, d) Threat; 4) Violence: a) Toward self b) Toward others c) Toward self & others d) Toward environment; and 5) Post-violence: a) Resolution & consequences. [12]

References

12. Perline, I. H. & Goldschmidt, J. (2004). The psychology and law of workplace violence: A handbook for mental health professional and employers. Springfield: Charles C. Thomas. 500 pp. O.K. Matzerath (talk) 23:45, 23 September 2019 (UTC)

13. White, T. W. (1996) Research, practice, and legal issues regarding workplace violence: A note of caution. In G. R. VandenBos and E. Q. Bulatao (Eds.), Violence on the job:Identifying risks and developing solutions (pp. 87-99). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

14. Fessenden, F. (2000, April 9). They threaten, seethe and unhinge, then kill in quantity. New York Times, pp. 1, 20-21.