Intervention Theory |
Main beliefs of the theory |
Strengths/limitations |
Basic crisis intervention theory | Behavioral responses associated with grief are temporary and can be relieved through short-term intervention techniques. |
Strengths include dealing with grief after loss immediately. Limitations include the inability to adapt to different crisis events. |
Expanded crisis intervention theory | Effective crisis management has to draw information from ecosystems, adaptational, interpersonal, chaos, and developmental theory. | It is proactive in identifying the real cause of trauma by addressing a wide range of factors. |
Applied crisis intervention theory | It encompasses three domains in crisis management including normal developmental crises, situational crises and existential crises. | It takes three perspectives in crisis intervention providing a wholesome approach. |
Intervention model | Main goals of the model | Methods to achieve goals |
The equilibrium model | Help people recover from a state of pre-crisis equilibrium. | Stabilizing the individual. |
The cognitive model | Help people become aware of their ability to control crises in their lives by changing their thinking. |
Recognizing and disputing irrational parts of their cognitions. Retaining and focusing on the rational and self-enhancing elements. |
The psychosocial transition model | Collaborate with clients in assessing the internal and external difficulties leading to the crisis and help in finding workable alternatives to their current behavior (Chapter 1). |
Internal cooing mechanisms. Social supports. Environmental resources. |
The developmental-ecological model | Integration of developmental stages and issues with the environment within which an individual operates (Chapter 1). | Assess both the individual and their environment to determine the interrelationship. |
The contextual-ecological model | Gauging the impact of the crisis on the individual or system. | Understanding proximity to event, reaction to event, relationship to event and amount of change caused by the event. |
Psychological first aid | Establishing safety of the client, reducing stress-related symptoms, providing rest and physical recuperation and linking clients to critical resources and social support systems (Chapter 1). |
Activities that provided caring support, empathic responding, concrete Information and assistance. |
The ACT model | Dealing with the inset of a traumatic event and probable behavioral emergencies. | Connecting clients to support systems. |
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Crisis is defined as the situation in which a person, institution and community undergoes a traumatic event that overwhelms response teams preventing effective containment and control of the event (Chapter 1). Systems that can be affected by crisis may range from a family to a whole nation. A crisis management team is expected to be proactive and respond to a crisis event in a timely manner. By waiting too long, the crisis may extend to lengths that are difficult to avert (Chapter 1). In the event of a crisis, people may be at risk of physical danger, which should be the main priority of a crisis management team.
Masters of crisis management must have the ability to incorporate their technical skill with theoretical knowledge. An effective crisis worker has a versatile range of life experiences. In the event of a crisis, workers must remain calm, poised and in control to create a stable and rational atmosphere essential for restoring the equilibrium of the situation (Chapter 1). Creativity and flexibility is crucial in addressing a wide range of crisis events. Crisis workers must be resilient and maintain a high level of commitment. Crisis intervention requires people with rapid mental reflexes (Chapter 1). Characteristics of an effective crisis worker are essential in helping people through problems that seem unsolvable.
Cultural Considerations in Crisis Counseling
Effective crisis workers must recognize the personal beliefs, values, biases, attitudes, and cultural diversity for appropriate intervention. Crisis workers must have self-knowledge on their personal cultural biases (Chapter 2). Crisis workers require knowledge about the status and cultures of different groups. They must have the skills to apply culturally appropriate interventions such as the readiness to incorporate alternative strategies to address the cultures of crisis clients. Crisis workers must have past experience with culturally different clients (Chapter 2). Failure to understand cultural perspectives can lead to erroneous interpretations, judgments, and conclusions that can cause harm to clients.
Some of the challenges in a multicultural approach in crisis management are the lack of books, professional teachings, research findings and implicit theories and assumptions in the field of counseling and crisis intervention (Chapter 2). In addition, a majority of the world’s population lives through non-western views, which are gradually making their way into the United States through immigration. For counselors to be effective, they must broaden their awareness of their own assumptions, values, and biases regarding cultural, racial, and group differences before considering intervention for a crisis event (Chapter 2). Crisis workers must understand how different trauma situations affect different populations.
Interventions and Assessment Models
Methods of assessment | Components of assessment |
When would you choose this method over other Methods of assessment? Can this method be used in Conjunction with other methods? Why or why not? |
ABCs of assessing in crisis intervention |
Affective State Behavioral Functioning Cognitive Functioning |
The method assesses the severity of the crisis from the client’s perspective. |
Triage assessment |
Tackle Affective severity scale Behavioral severity scale |
The method is not time consuming (Chapter 3). It can be used in conjunction with the ABCs of assign in crisis intervention. |
Psychobiological assessment |
Assessment of : Self-report components Behavioral components Physiological components |
It best deals with situations that involve human limbic systems. |
A hybrid model of crisis intervention is a combination of linear models with a systems model that providing a clearer perspective of tasks that need to be accomplished (Chapter 3). The first task involved in the model is pre-dispositioning meaning placing oneself in the possible occurrence of a crisis. The second takes is problem exploration by perceiving the crisis in the same way that a client would. The third task involves providing support in the three ways including psychological support, logistical support and social support (Chapter 3). At times clients require informational support.
It is imperative that a crisis worker identify the severity of a crisis event in a timely manner during their interaction with the client. Crisis workers must address affective state, behavioral state and cognitive state in crisis management (Chapter 3). Workers should compare a client’s current state with pre-crisis functioning to identify radical shifts in behavior. Rating clients involves rating whether they fit any descriptions of severe impairment. Determining severity is important for deciding on the appropriate intervention techniques (Chapter 3). Observations give workers a clear perspective of the trauma a crisis causes on the client.
References
Chapter 1. Approaching Crisis Intervention
Chapter 2. Culturally Effective Helping in Crisis
Chapter 3. The Intervention and Assessment Models