Nurses' attitudes toward physical assaults by patients.

This article reports the survey findings of 184 psychiatric nurses' attitudes toward patient physical assault. Attitudes related to staff competence and performance, legal aspects, patient responsibility and safety were measured on a self-report questionnaire. Data were interpreted based on the scant literature related to patient assaults. Findings indicated that attitudes related to legal aspects of patient assault varied considerably among nursing staff. Discussion highlighted the influence of attitudes on both assaulted staff as well as the victim's colleagues.