Prevalence and Determinants of Work Place Violence among Civil Servants in Osogbo, Nigeria
Keywords:
Workplace violence, Verbal abuse, Civil Servants, StressAbstract
Introduction: Violence is a universal phenomenon that occurs virtually in all settings where there is human interaction. The civil service represents a conglomeration of individuals with diverse backgrounds working with government establishments and with varying degrees of interactions. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and determinants of workplace violence among civil servants in Osun State.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 319 civil servants. Study participants were selected via multistage sampling method. Relevant information was obtained via a semi-structured questionnaire. Pertinent analyses were done using univariate, bivariate and multivariate approaches.
Results: The mean age of the respondents was 38years (±9.45), with 49.8% of them being females. The overall prevalence of workplace violence was 37%. Verbal abuse (35.1%), was the commonest form of workplace violence experienced. More male respondents perpetrated all forms of violence notably verbal abuse (11.3%) compared to their female counterparts (3.8%). At the logistic regressions stage, stress was statistically significant as the predictive factor for experiencing violence both as a victim and as a perpetrator.
Conclusion: Workplace violence is prevalent among civil servants in Osun State. Additionally, stress was discovered to be the major factor causing workplace violence. This is probably as a result of poor working conditions. Therefore, the government needs to provide the enabling environment that will improve the working conditions in the civil service.
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