Key Tools and Program Components to Prevent Workplace Violence
By George Vergolias, PsyD, CTM
Medical Director
R3 Continuum
We have seen an exponential increase in media coverage and societal anxiety around “active shooter” scenarios in recent years. Not surprisingly, companies are increasingly seeking consultation and training from threat experts. Far too often these interventions focus on what to do as an event unfolds and fail to adequately address interventions before an incident occurs. The best way to get out of a violent situation is to avoid getting into one to begin with. Prevention is always more effective than response.
Mass Shootings and Active Shooters
Despite our collective anxiety, the frequency of mass shooting incidents over the past 20 years has actually remained fairly stable, with only a small increase in frequency since 2007.1,2,3 In the United States, the statistical risk of being killed from a mass shooting incident is roughly equivalent to being killed by a lightning strike (1:10 million). Nevertheless, preventing workplace violence is essential.
Understand the Two Primary Biological Modes of Violence
It is important to understand the type of violence you are trying to prevent. Over 70 years of study, researchers have identified two distinct physiological modes of violence,4 each triggering different neurochemical processes and pathways in the brain.
Affective Violence: Picture a cornered house cat with no escape as a large Rottweiler slowly approaches. The cat is probably hissing, back arched, claws extended, scanning its field of vision, ready to run or attack. This is affective (or emotional) violence. It is emotional, defensive, reactive, immediate in its response, and limited in terms of time. The primary goal is to reduce the threat; a “fight or flight” response. The overwhelming majority of violence and workplace aggression is affective in nature. In affective violence, the primary goal of intervention is to help the subject reach emotional equilibrium and feel less threatened, thus reducing the emotionality and risk of physical aggression.
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