A national survey of violence in the practice of social work

Social workers are at risk of violence in the workplace. Some of this violence has been attributed to deinstitutionalization and the very nature of problems addressed by social workers. Yet, we know very little about nationwide prevalence of such incidents. In this study, the authors look at a national sample of social workers drawn from the membership of the National Association of Social Workers, with particular attention to race, gender, and practice context. Data suggest that verbal abuse is quite common, whereas threats of assault and actual assault are less common, but problematic. Being young and male places a worker at higher risk, and public and nonprofit agency practitioners report many more incidents than workers in private practice.