Author(s)

Virgininia Dube-Mawerewere, Grace Nkhoma

College of Health Sciences, University of Zimbabwe, Harare, Zimbabwe.

Background: Aggressive tendencies from psychiatric inpatients are increasingly becoming problematic at a national referral psychiatric hospital in Zimbabwe. No research has been done in this context to determine the dynamics around this disturbing phenomenon. Objectives: To determine the level of knowledge on anger control, to determine the occurrence of real assaultive behaviour and to examine the relationship between level of knowledge on anger control and occurrence of real assaultive behaviour in patients aged 20 - 45 years admitted at a national referral psychiatric hospital in Zimbabwe. Method: A descriptive correlational design was used. Seventy-six respondents aged between 20 and 45 years were selected using simple random sampling. A structured interview was used to collect data. The occurrence of real assaultive behaviour was adapted from the Staff Observation and Aggression Scale completed by observing patients during the assaultive behaviour occurrence. Patient observation was done by the psychiatric trained nurses who were specifically trained for this study to fill the part of the data collection instrument that needed observation. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Pearson Correlation Coefficient test and simple regression analysis. Results: Results showed a Pearson coefficient test of (r = -3.47, p < 0.01). R-Squared indicated that levels of knowledge on anger control accounts for 12% variance in the occurrence of real assaultive behaviour. Conclusions: Results call for collaboration of mental health practitioners to empower patients with anger control skills.

Assaultive Behaviour, Anger Control, National Referral Psychiatric Hospital, Risk, Psychiatric Nurses, Staff Observation and Aggression Scale-Revised

Dube-Mawerewere, V. and Nkhoma, G. (2017) Relationship between Level of Knowledge on Anger Control and Occurrence of Real Assaultive Behaviour in Patients (20 - 45 Years) Admitted at a National Referral Psychiatric Hospital in Zimbabwe. Open Journal of Nursing, 7, 804-813. doi: 10.4236/ojn.2017.77061.