Onset of workplace bullying and violence and changes in health-related behaviors: a multi-cohort study.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to examine whether exposure to workplace bullying and violence is associated with changes in health-related behaviors over time. METHODS: (longitudinal analysis). We applied logistic regression with generalized estimating equations. Subgroup differences by sex were examined. RESULTS: Among 125 854 participant-observations across 2-3 study phases of the 78 624 participants, 6-8% experienced onset of workplace bullying and 9-14% reported onset of workplace violence over 1-2 years. The strongest association was observed between onset of violence and becoming obese, with an odds ratio (OR) of 1.13 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.00-1.27] in the concurrent and 1.31 (95% CI 1.05-1.64) in the longitudinal analysis. In addition, onset of bullying (OR 1.23, 95% CI 1.06-1.44) and violence (OR 1.11, 95% CI 0.99-1.24) were concurrently associated with initiation of excessive alcohol use, with weaker associations in the longitudinal analysis. Exposure-response relationships were observed for all aforementioned associations and findings were consistent across cohorts. Men were more likely to initiate excessive alcohol use than women after experiencing violence (P=0.008). CONCLUSION: Exposure to workplace bullying and violence was associated with adverse changes in health-related behaviors.