A cross-national comparison of workplace violence and response strategies

Long considered exclusively as a personal or inter-personal issue, workplace violence is now progressively gaining momentum and recognition as an organizational issue as well as becoming a community and societal concern and, eventually, a leading cross-national issue within the international arena. This chapter provides an introduction to the evolution of workplace violence from a purely personal issue into one of an organizational, societal and cross-national form. The chapter goes on to identify a number of key issues that are emerging from the cross-national character of this phenomenon. These include the impact of different perceptions and cultural backgrounds on the identification of this issue, the increasing recognition of workplace violence in developing countries, the expanding occurrence of psychological violence, and the emergence of mass physical violence. The final issue examined is that of the growing awareness of the economic ‘cost’ of violence at work. In the light of such emerging issues, the chapter outlines the current initiatives at an international level to prevent and manage workplace violence. The chapter concludes with a brief outline of further key responses needed at a cross-national level to begin to address this issue.