People exposed to real or threatened violence at work are significantly more likely to develop depression or stress-related illness than other working adults, according to an article in the September issue of the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

The Danish study found that the magnitude of risk was in direct proportion to the amount of workplace violence experienced. The findings are based on occupations of more than 14,000 hospital inpatients and outpatients between the ages of 18 and 65 years who were treated between 1995 and 1998 against a control group of 38,000 age- and sex-matched healthy peers.

All participants were asked about their jobs and if they had been subjected to violence at work in the previous 12 months. The prevalence of real and threatened violence was highest among those working in health, education, and social work. Male employees were at greater risk of violence than women.

While most violence came from clients, patients, and pupils, around 5 percent of study participants with mental health problems said they were subjected to violent behavior from their colleagues.

Almost half said they had been subjected to more than one incident of violence or threatening behavior in the preceding 12 months, and one in five said they had been subjected to both.

Exposure to violence boosted the risk of depression by 45 percent in women and 48 percent in men, compared with those in workplaces without any risk of violence. Stress-related disorders were around 33 percent more likely in women and 55 percent more likely in men.

The authors wrote that other research suggests that being subjected to violence may over-stimulate the autonomic nervous system, which then translates into an emotional disorder, even among those with stable personality traits.