Whose hand? MY HAND!

This is not actually true. The Hand of workplace violence does not stretch ominously forth from the dark cuffs of my shirt. But in a mere 10 years, I will fit half the criteria that defines the group of Americans who the FBI has fit with the profile "most likely to go postal". The people most likely to commit extreme violent acts at the workplace are:

1) A white male between 30 and 40 years old

2) Someone who has a "keen interest" in guns

To this incredibly enigmatic profile, the Justice Department has been kind enough to add:

1) Someone who holds irrational ideals and beliefs

2) An employee experiencing exceptional stress outside of work, such as a divorce

3) A person who is fascinated by weapons

4) An employee who displays unwarranted anger

5) A person who can't take criticism

6) Someone who expresses a lack of concern for the safety of others.

These criteria do little to help us Identify who might be a potential radical. However, there has been a lot of research done into the similarities between the majority of people who commit egregious acts of violence. Many of these similarities make perfect sense to us. These people usually have:

* A history of violence, fascination with the military, or being a survivalist

* Isolationist tendencies

* A difficulty accepting authority and/or reality

* Substance abuse and/or mental health problems

According to Jurg Mattman of the Workplace Violence Research Institute, the majority of people who commit acts of violence are somehow related to the place where the act is perpetrated. They are either the recipient or object of a service provided by the workplace, or they are a former or current employee of the workplace. The third category consists of people who have no real relation to the workplace where the violent act takes place. These groups generally fall outside of the realm of what is considered workplace violence, since their violent act, usually robbery or aggressive assault, has little or nothing to do with the actual place where the crime is committed.