Workplace violence and self-reported physical and mental health: a national cross-sectional study in Lebanon

Few studies have investigated the prevalence of workplace violence (WPV) - defined as any physical or psychological violence experienced in the workplace - in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. We aimed to examine the determinants of WPV and its association with self-reported physical and mental health among employed adults residing in Lebanon.

This was a national cross-sectional study among working-age residents of Lebanon recruited through random digit dialling. Data were collected from January to July 2024. The main exposure of interest was WPV, defined as having experienced at least one incident of physical or psychological violence in the past six months. We measured three outcomes - depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and poor physical health - using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9, Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7, and Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System Global Health 1.2 scales, respectively. Adjusted logistic regression models, accounting for covariates identified through directed acyclic graphs, estimated the association between WPV and each outcome, separately.

We enrolled 3076 employed participants with a median age of 37 years (interquartile range = 28-46), of whom 30.5% had completed college or postgraduate education and 24.9% were non-Lebanese. Almost 16% of participants experienced at least one form of WPV. Moreover, 33.4%, 25.5%, and 75.7% experienced depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and reported poor physical health, respectively. Being exposed to WPV increased the odds of depressive symptoms (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 3.00; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.40-3.70), anxiety symptoms (aOR = 3.01; 95% CI = 2.41-3.72), and poor physical health (aOR = 2.82; 95% CI = 2.04-3.98) after adjusting for age, sex, education, nationality, marital status, urbanicity, and job sector.

Our findings highlight the extent and effect of WPV among workers in Lebanon and the urgent need to address the matter. Findings offer a basis for developing targeted interventions aimed to support vulnerable workers.