Client Violence and Emotional Health Among Child Protection Services Workers

This study examined how client violence, or violence from clients, contributes to emotional health over the first three years of employment among one group of susceptible workers: child protective services workers in child welfare. The study assessed the impact of three types of client violence (i.e., yelling, threats, and physical assault) and job characteristics (e.g., time pressure, supervisory support) on emotional health (i.e., stress, psychological distress, and personal burnout), using a sample of 1,117-1,122 newly hired workers over six waves of data collected at six-month intervals. Using multi-level mixed effects regression models, findings indicated that general stress and personal burnout were curvilinear, peaking about 18-24 months post baseline. Experiencing threats and yelling both increased stress and personal burnout, and all three forms of violence were associated with higher levels of psychological distress symptoms. Further, although emotional health trajectories changed over time, the effects of violence did not; violent experiences were equally detrimental to emotional health symptoms at each wave of data collection. Workplace characteristics such as time pressure exacerbated the relationship between client violence and emotional health, while supervisor support countered negative effects of physical violence. Findings suggest the importance of policies and protocols that emphasize reporting client violence for agency personnel, including supervisors, to provide appropriate emotional and tangible support.