Workplace Violence: Cause for Concern or the Construction of a New Category of Fear?

This paper discusses the problems raised by growing media, official and organisational attention to workplace violence. At present this issue is documented in a diffuse, and frequently inflammatory way with little attention to accurate quantification of incidence nor any systematic attempt to place the risk in context. Suggestions are made for definition, classification and operationalisation of the variables which constitute workplace violence to facilitate agency data collection, research and management.