Unveiling the Shadows: Interconnection of client violence and turnover intention in Chinese social work chain-mediated effects of fear and affective commitment

Abstract The client violence faced by social workers has been widely acknowledged, but research on the impact of client violence on turnover intention is scarce. Therefore, this study constructed a chain mediation model by incorporating two variables, fear and emotional commitment, from social workers’ psychological profiles. A questionnaire survey involving 602 social workers in central China yielded the following findings: (1) Client violence significantly and positively predicted turnover intention. (2) Fear and affective commitment serve as mediators between client violence and turnover intention. (3) Fear and affective commitment operated as chain mediators in the association between client violence and turnover intention. Specifically, client violence increases turnover intention by elevating the level of fear and decreasing affective commitment. The findings highlight the mechanism of the negative impact of client violence on turnover intention. Future practice should focus more on the psychological well-being of social workers and develop appropriate support to address the impact of client violence more effectively.