1. “The care, welfare, safety, and security of others.”

2. Discussion

3. Behavior Levels
Crisis Development Staff Attitude
 Anxiety
 A noticeable increase or
change in behavior, e.g.
pacing, finger drumming
,wringing of hands,
starring.
 Supportive
 An empathic,
nonjudgmental approach
attempting to alleviate
anxiety.

4. Behavior Levels
Crisis Development Staff Attitude
 Defensive
 Defensive: The beginning
stage of loss of rationality. At
this point an individual often
becomes belligerent and
challenges authority.
 Directive
 Directive: An approach in
which a staff member takes
control of a potentially
escalating situation by
setting limits.
 Discuss some examples

5. Behavior Levels
Crisis Development Staff Attitude
 Acting Out Person
 Acting Out Person: The total
loss of control which often
results in in a physical acting
out episode.
 Nonviolent Physical Crisis
Intervention
 Intervention: Allow venting
and remove from the area if
possible.

6. Behavior Levels
Crisis Development Staff Attitude
 Tension Reduction
 Tension Reduction: Decrease
in physical and emotional
energy which occurs after a
person has acted out,
characterized by the
regaining of rationality.
 Therapeutic Rapport
 Therapeutic Rapport: An
attempt to reestablish
communication with an
individual who is in the
tension reduction stage.

7. Demonstration
Proxemics & Kinesics

8. Proxemics (Personal Space)
 Personal space varies depending on who is
approaching and what the context of the situation
happens to be. On average, an individuals personal
space is 1 ½ to 3 feet.
 Discussion: What other factors may apply?

9. Kinesics (Body posture &motion)
 Includes facial expressions, posture, and
movements.
 Discuss nonverbal signs of anxiety observed during
exercise
 Staff kinesics behavior can serve to either escalate
or deescalate a given situation
 A face-to-face or challenging position is another way
of increasing anxiety when approaching an individual

10. Supportive Stance
 Benefits:
 Communication of respect by honoring personal
space
 Is nonthreatening, non-challenging, & offers an
escape route
 Contributes to staff’s personal safety if attacked

11. Role Play

12. Para-verbal Communication
 Component
 Tone
 Volume
 Cadence
 Suggested Approach
 Try to avoid inflections of
impatience, condescension,
inattention, etc
 Keep the volume
appropriate for the distance
& situation
 Deliver your message using
an even rate & rhythm

13. Role Play

14. 1. Questioning

15. Role Play 2

16. Refusal

17. Role Play 3

18. Release

19. Role Play 4

20. Intimidation

21. Tension Reduction

22. Questioning Interventions
 Information seeking: a
rational question seeking a
rational response
 Challenging: questioning
authority or being evasive
 Give a rational response
 Stay on topic (redirect), set
limits if individual persists
Verbal Escalation Continuum

23. Refusal Intervention
 Noncompliance, slight loss
of rationalization
 Set Limits
Verbal Escalation Continuum

24. Release Intervention
 Acting out, emotional
outburst, loss of
rationalization. Venting,
screaming, swearing.
High energy output.
 Allow venting, if possible.
Remove audience or acting
out individual from the area.
When individual begins to
quit down, state directives
that are nonthreatening.
Use an understanding,
reasonable approach. Be
prepared to enforce any
limits you set.
Verbal Escalation Continuum

25. Intimidation Intervention
 Individual is verbally and / or
nonverbally threatening staff
in some manner. Hands on
approach at this time may
trigger physical acting out
behavior.
 Seek assistance and wait
for team to intervene, if
possible. Try to avoid
individual intervention.
Verbal Escalation Continuum

26. Tension Reduction Intervention
 Drop of energy which occurs
after every crisis situation,
whether it is after low level
defensive behaviors or after
intimidation.
 Establish Therapeutic
Rapport- reestablish
communication with the
individual. This stage will be
discussed in greater detail
later in the course.
Verbal Escalation Continuum

27. Limit Setting
 Setting limits comes out of a recognition that you cannot force
individuals to act appropriately. When you set limits, you are
offering a person choices, as well as stating consequences of
those choices.
 Limits usually are better received when the positive choice and
consequences are stated first. Starting with negative
consequences may be perceived as a challenge or an
ultimatum, and the individual may not even hear the positive
choice.

28. Limit Setting
 Limits will be most effective when they are:
 SIMPLE
 REASONABLE
 ENFORCEABLE

29. Verbal Intervention Tips
DO DON’T
 Remain calm
 Isolate the situation
 Enforce Limits– Give
Options
 Listen
 Be aware of non-verbal's
 Be consistent
 Have a plan
 Overreact
 Get in a power struggle
 Make false promises
 Fake attention
 Be threatening
 Use jargon (tends to confuse
& frustrate)

30. Empathic Listening
 Empathic Listening is an active process to discern
what a person is saying.
 Key Elements:
 Be non-judgmental
 Give undivided attention – Don’t fake it!
 Listen carefully to what the person is really
saying(focus on feelings, not just facts). – Underlying
message.
 Allow silence for reflection
 Use restatement to clarify messages

31. Precipitating Factors
 Internal or external cause of an acting out behavior
which staff member has little or no control.
 Examples:
 Loss of personal power – need to show that one is
still in control and can still act as an individual
 Need to Maintain Self-Esteem - trying to save face
in a crisis because of peer pressure.

32. Precipitating Factors
 Fear – not knowing what is happening or knowing
the results of an action will cause an unpleasant
response.
 Failure – not being able to complete a task or falling
short of a goal
 Attention Seeking – reinforcement of a response or
wanting attention from staff and others

33. Precipitating Factors
 Displaced Anger - outside factors which trigger
acting out behavior toward staff.
 Psychological / Physiological Causes – including
drug induced behavior states, hunger, pain,
insomnia, and psychological disorders.
 Group examples?

34. Understanding Factors Helps Staff:
 Prevent acting out behavior by being proactive.
 Depersonalize crisis situations by recognizing that
we are seldom the cause of the acting out behavior.
 Avoid becoming a precipitating factor ourselves! If
we are not able to rationally detach from a potential
crisis situation, we become a part of the problem and
may actually precipitate acting out behavior from a
student.

35. Definition: Ability to stay in control of one’s own
behavior and not take acting out behavior
personally!

36. 1. Staff may not be able to control precipitating
factors, but they can control their own
response to the acting out behaviors which
result.
2. A professional attitude must be maintained so
that we may control the situation without
overreacting or acting inappropriately.

37. 3. Staff needs to find positive outlets for the
negative energy absorbed from acting out
individuals
4. Group thoughts on ways to remain rationally
detached:

38. Definition: The concept that behaviors and
attitudes of staff impact on behaviors and
attitudes of students and vice versa.

39. Integrated Experience
Student Behavior Staff Attitude
 Anxiety (-)
 Defensive (-)
 Acting Out Person (-)
 Tension Reduction (-)
 Supportive (+)
 Directive (+)
 Nonviolent Intervention (+)
 Therapeutic Rapport (+)

40. People will change either when they hurt enough
they have to, or they have learned enough that they
want to, and received enough they are able to.
John Maxwell