Workplace Violence Prevention managing anger and aggression in the workplace

What do you think of when you hear the term, workplace violence?

What is workplace violence? For our purposes, it’s any incident that could: escalate and threaten the safety and security of an employee make an employee feel afraid to come to work, stay at work, or interact with others; involve vandalism to company or personal property; start at home and crossover to the workplace.

Workplace Violence includes but not limited to: Pushing, shoving, beating, stabbing, shooting, rape, homicide and suicide Threats to cause harm – verbal, written, intimidating body language Destruction of property Shouting, swearing Bullying Stalking Obscene phone calls, e-mails, texts Bullying – exercise of power through threat, humiliation

Mccabe hamilton & Renny Workplace Violence policy Acts and threats of violence and aggression will not be tolerated. You are expected to report any threats or acts of violence or potentially dangerous persons. You are protected from retaliation if you report. Review policy. whom to report to, reporting potentially dangerous persons (exercising good judgment)

ANGER ALERTS US OF A POTENTIAL THREAT SIGNALS THAT YOU FEEL SOMETHING IS WRONG IS A NORMAL HEALTHY EMOTION . Social Injustice: Civil rights movement, child abuse, unfair labor practices

ANGER – An emotion that Can escalate to violence Anger is an emotional state that varies in intensity form mild irritation to intense fury and rage and can escalate to violence

Emotions, energy, and the body Like other emotions it is accompanied by physiological and biological changes; when you get angry your heart rate goes up, blood pressure goes up, as do the level of your hormones responsible for releasing energy; adrenaline & noradrenaline Because its rooted in our survival response – Fight/Flight/Freeze the instinctive way to express anger is to respond aggressively Instinctive: Reptilian Brain – Needed for survival, Primitive Need to engage higher functions of the brain - Need to calm, contain - fight/flight response, choose to respond in a healthier way we’ve evolved to do this (don’t waste 14 billion years of evolution) Emotion is energy expressed in the body - children need help self-regulating, their neural systems are not fully developed –but many of us, even though are neural systems have developed, we may not have been taught the skills of how to self regulate, particularly when we are flooded emotionally. We all have anger, and we have to learn how to deal with it in ways that are healthy and constructive, otherwise we risk damage to our relationships, or derailing of important goals such as loss of a job, or restrictions to our freedom – e.g. arrested because of our aggression

Anger is a “secondary” emotion that may cover for: Fear Hurt Loss Abandonment Disappointment Secondary means it is a reaction. Anger can be a defense against experiencing other deeper, or more painful feelings. It may be easier to feel angry than hurt, shame, fear

WHY ARE WE ANGRY? Emotional defense Anger makes us feel powerful We fear losing control or being hurt Injustice: Real or imagined Everything seems like a personal attack We expect others to be or think like us We learned to solve our problems through angry behavior

Who makes You angry? No one … “makes us mad” LOOOOK in THE MIRRRROR! No one … “makes us mad” “makes us do” angry things “makes us have” angry thoughts “makes us say” angry words Taking responsibility for our feelings empowers us!

Responsibility = Response + Ability The Ability to Respond Blaming the other for our feelings gives our power away to them Taking responsibility allows us to choose our response

Nature versus nurture Temperament is inherited. How we choose to respond to “triggers” is based on what we’ve learned. Illnesses, injuries, and chemical substances can affect our responses. Why are some people more angry than others? People who are easily angered generally have what some psychologists call a low tolerance for frustration, meaning simply that they feel that they should not have to be subjected to frustration, inconvenience, or annoyance. They can't take things in stride, and they're particularly infuriated if the situation seems somehow unjust: for example, being corrected for a minor mistake. What makes these people this way? A number of things. One cause may be genetic or physiological: There is evidence that some children are born irritable, touchy, and easily angered, and that these signs are present from a very early age. Another may be sociocultural. Anger is often regarded as negative; we're taught that it's all right to express anxiety, sadness, or other emotions but not to express anger. As a result, we don't learn how to handle it or channel it constructively. Research has also found that family background plays a role. Typically, people who are easily angered come from families that are disruptive, chaotic, and not skilled at emotional communications. Additionally illness, injuries, and chemical substance can affect our responses

Primary strategies for dealing with angry Feelings Expressing In an assertive, not aggressive way Suppressing Rechanneling and Refocusing – May have negative effects Calming Taking steps to lower heart rate, let feelings subside Expressing angry feelings in an assertive—not aggressive—manner is the healthiest way to express anger. To do this, we have to learn how to make clear what our needs are, and how to get them met, without hurting others. Being assertive doesn't mean being pushy or demanding; it means being respectful of yourself and others. Anger can be suppressed, and then converted or redirected. This happens when we hold in our anger, stop thinking about it, and focus on something positive. The aim is to inhibit or suppress the anger and convert it into more constructive behavior. The danger in this type of response is that if it isn't allowed outward expression, anger can turn inward—on yourself. Anger turned inward may cause hypertension, high blood pressure, or depression. Unexpressed anger can create other problems. It can lead to pathological expressions of anger, such as passive-aggressive behavior (getting back at people indirectly, without telling them why, rather than confronting them head-on) or a personality that seems perpetually cynical and hostile. People who are constantly putting others down, criticizing everything, and making cynical comments haven't learned how to constructively express their anger. Not surprisingly, they aren't likely to have many successful relationships. Finally, you can calm down inside. This means not just controlling your outward behavior, but also controlling your internal responses, taking steps to lower your heart rate, calm yourself down, and let the feelings subside.

Anger Management 1. Recognizing “hazardous” situations 2. Being able to discipline yourself to become aware of where you are feeling what you are feeling 3. Calming 4. Speaking respectfully about your feelings and your view of the situation The goal of anger management is to reduce both the intensity of emotional feelings and the physiological arousal that anger causes. You can't get rid of, or avoid, the things or the people that enrage you, nor can you change them, but you can learn to control your reactions. Being able to recognize high risk situations – knowing what is likely to trigger our anger Developing the skill to become aware of where (in the body) you are feeling, what you are feeling – Particular when flooded this allows us to work with the sensation and energy directly without all of the narrative, “story” of our reaction e.g. “he’s an S.O.B.” “that’s not fair”, “what gives her the right” Calming – slowing down the reactive reptilian brain and shift the energy in our body, (bottom up), and top down: engage the higher coticial front brain (evolved) brain – choosing our response Expression: speaking respectfully –not being a doormat Assertiverness (vs. Aggression)

Knowing our Red Flags Triggers (Likely Anger Situations) Physical Responses (What’s happening in your body) Behavioral Signs (The habits you have when getting angry) Thought Patterns (Automatic thoughts that you have used in the past) Mental Imagery (What you see yourself doing if….) Triggers: Social situation or setting, kids, mate, traffic, having to wait, being embarrassed, humiliated, challenged, rudeness, carelessness, loud noise Physical Responses: Your body’s response to the situation (HR increase, BR increase, tunnel vision, muscle tension, temperature changes Behavioral Signs: Tapping foot, pacing, grinding teeth, clearing throat, raising voice, eyes hardening, narrowing Thought Patterns: Automatic self defeating negative talk that the mind may generate, such as: Labeling, “that jerk”, Mind reading, “she did it on purpose” Fortune telling “there’s no use in trying” Catastrophizing “I can’t stand it” Shoulds: translating preferences in to demands (self righteous injustice) “She shouldn’t act like that” “it’s not fair” Mental Imagery: Pictures in the Mind’s Eye of retribution, pay-back or other fantasized response Our red flags are a single to bring more awareness to ourselves, and that we may need to takes steps to de-escalate, that we need to be cautious in how we are responding

Anger Scale Helps us: Recognize our level of anger. 2. Know when we need to use a strategy to reduce our level of escalation.     Can Compound ; Bad start at home while going to work: Kids not ready, spilled coffee, car won’t start, heavy traffic, grumpy boss….

De-Escalation strategies Immediate Long Term Time out Breathing Engaging senses Calming thoughts Life saver technique Build an identity outside of work Exercise Relaxation Play Deepening relationships Stress management EAP as a resource

Preventing Workplace violence The Respectful Workplace Starts with each one of us. Are we respectful of others? Stopping the seeds of violence.

Examples of Disrespect Rolling eyes or giving “stink eye” Gossiping Putting others down with jokes or sarcasm Know it all attitude

Examples of Disrespect Blaming others for mistakes, never taking responsibility for them Continual complaining and negativity Ignoring

The Disrespectful workplace Creates tension, anxiety, and stress in the workplace. Affects productivity When interpersonal conflicts are left unresolved - they can escalate to more serious levels of violence.

Self Assessment……..Am I Respectful? Do I interrupt? Am I impatient? Do I listen to others? Am I reliable? Do I lose my temper often? Am I consistently critical or negative? Do I like to argue or provoke people?

What to do when confronted with Aggression If at all possible avoid the situation Stay calm - becoming angry too will just make things worse Listen - sometimes the best thing to say is nothing Try to hear what the person is saying What do they want? What’s upsetting them ? What needs to be done for them to be able to calm down? As soon as possible, create space Debrief with a supervisor

Employee Assistance of the Pacific Short term professional counseling – 8 sessions per year No cost to employee Confidential – employer is not informed Phone 597-8222