Talk:Crisis

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This article was the subject of an educational assignment in 2014 Q1. Further details were available on the "Education Program:Brock University/NUSC 1P10 Professional and Therapeutic Communications (Fall 2014)" page, which is now unavailable on the wiki.

The "Information Security" section is nonsensical.

For example, the article states that "[i]n InfoSec Crisis is the present tense of a disaster."

I would take issue on several points. First, nouns do not have a present tense. Only verbs do. Second, the use of the abbreviation "InfoSec" seems out-of-place; I am not used to seeing fields of professional activity abbreviated this way in WikiPedia. Maybe I am misunderstanding the nature of this (very narrow) section of the article.

Finally, the InfoSec section seems very narrow to me, as if it is specific to a single certification or book. I think that allowing Information Security to become narrow and parochialized in this way is probably not a good thing. I don't think that the hackers and fraudsters of the world are sitting around thinking up official definitions for "crisis" and "disaster."

If there is a need to provide information related to this specific certification, book, or whatever, it should be done under a narrower heading, and the factual and formatting errors cleaned up.

In light of above comments, which are several weeks old and unaddressed, I am removing the "InfoSec" portion. 71.81.55.59 22:49, 24 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]

This page does not meet the standards of an encyclopedia entry. There is already a superb Wiktionary entry for Crisis.

In addition, Wikipedia has numerous pages refering to crises, including the Crisis disambig page. The disambig page accomplishes all that this page does and much more. This page should be deprecated and redirected to the Crisis (disambiguation) page.

--Woodlandpath 15:51, 31 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I agree. jnestorius^(talk) 12:57, 12 December 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I disagree -- Crisis is a disputed term (for instance, Koselleck's "Critique and Crisis"); a wikipedia entry on crisis could describe some of the debate. I DO agree that the current entry is more of an expanded dictionary entry, but it could (and should!) be developed into something more. Begeun (talk) 19:14, 20 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I request a review of this article. Furthermore, I believe some Wikipedia entries are used as vehicles for advertisements. Is there any justifiable reason that this page should include two links to a commercial web page, especially as they add nothing of consequence to the entry? [Coping with Crisis] I am convinced that advertising is the raison d'être of some WP pages, and these links or pages should be expunged. The section on "Personal Crisis" leaves this page (and Wikipedia) open to ridicule.

--Woodlandpath (talk) 13:33, 6 April 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Everything that is in bold was added to the page.

I chose to add a new section to this article entitled "Ways to Manage a Crisis". I did this because I found that the article was lacking some information, specifically for helping people who are in a crisis or for individuals who are trying to assist them through it. I elaborated on various techniques for going about of a crisis intervention. Additionally, I also added information on an important communication technique for when dealing with a crisis, which is active listening. I made sure that all the information in this section was from credible sources. I'd love some feedback. Sb10ok (talk) 00:08, 6 November 2014 (UTC)[reply]

I worked on the definition and introduction of the "Crisis" entry. I found that the previous entry that had been made was a bit choppy and difficult to follow. I attempted to provide a better definition as well as smooth out the way in which the information flowed. I added the whole of the first paragraph and I went through the rest of the introduction, changing bits and pieces of it. I did not change much but I made minor edits in order to make it easier for readers to understand the message that was being expressed. --Kb14ie (talk) 00:36, 6 November 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Definition

A crisis is any situation in which the ability to cope is exceeded (Lancely, 2003). To be in a crisis means that the situation cannot be dealt with by an individual or a group's regular coping methods because the problem is out of the normal scope of a given system. Due to this, one may develop, or attempt to develop, new coping mechanisms - which which can be positive or negative. When one is in a place that is considered to be crisis situation, it is much more likely for them to be guided by emotional instincts rather than logic and reasoning. Emotional instincts tend to lead to irrational decisions which may not only affect the individual, but also anybody in their surrounding environment. This is why it is more desirable that it is detected early when one is in a crisis situation. There are many ways by which crisis can be detected. One may undergo many behavioral and other changes due to their inability to cope with the crisis.

Crisis has several defining characteristics. Seeger, Sellnow, and Ulmer[2] say that crises have four defining characteristics that are "specific, unexpected, and non-routine events (or series of events) that [create] high levels of uncertainty and is a threat or a perceived threat to an organization's high priority goals." Thus the first three characteristics are that the event is:

1. Unexpected (i.e., a surprise)
2. Creates uncertainty
3. Is seen as a threat to important goals

Venette[3] argues that "crisis is a process of transformation where the old system can no longer be maintained." Therefore the fourth defining quality is: the need for change. If change is not needed, the event could more accurately be described as a failure.

Apart from natural crises that are inherently unpredictable (volcanic eruptions, tsunami etc.) most of the crises that we face are human-created. Hence, the criteria of their being 'unexpected' depends upon failure to notice the onset of crisis conditions. Some of our inability to recognize crises before they become dangerous is due to denial and other psychological responses [4] that provide succour and protection for our emotions.

A different set of reasons for failing to notice the onset of crises is that we allow ourselves to believe that we are doing something for reasons that are false. In other words, we are doing the wrong things for the right reasons. For example, we might believe that we are solving the threats of climate change by engaging in economic trading activity that has no real impact on the climate. Mitroff and Silvers [5] posit two reasons for these mistakes, which they classify as Type 3 (inadvertent) and Type 4 (deliberate) errors. The effect of our inability to attend to the likely results of our actions can result in crisis.

From this perspective we might usefully learn that failing to understand the real causes of our difficulties is likely to lead to repeated downstream 'blowback'. Where states are concerned, Michael Brecher, based on case studies of the International Crisis Behavior (ICB) project, suggested a different way of defining crisis as conditions are perceptions held by the highest level decision-makers of the actor concerned:[6]

1. threat to basic values, with a simultaneous or subsequent
2. high probability of involvement in military hostilities, and the awareness of
3. finite time for response to the external value threat

A personal crisis occurs when an individual's ability to cope is exceeded ^[1]. This is preceded by events of an extraordinary nature triggering extreme tension and stress within an individual, i.e., the crisis, which then requires major decisions or actions to resolve. Crises can be triggered by a wide range of situations including but not limited to extreme weather conditions, sudden change in employment/financial state, medical emergencies, long-term illness, and social or familial turmoil. Crises are simply a change in the events that comprise the day-to-day life of a person and those in their close circle, such as the loss of a job, extreme financial hardship, substance addiction/abuse and other situations that are life altering and require action that is outside the "normal" daily routine. A person going through a crisis experiences a state of mental disequilibrium, in which the ego struggles to balance both internal and external demands ^[2]. In this case, said person resorts to coping mechanisms to deal with the stress. Various coping mechanisms include^[3]:

• High emotions (crying, physical withdrawal)
• Defence mechanisms (denial, repression)
• Making rash decisions
• Acting out
• Putting things on hold

In some cases, it is difficult for an individual undergoing a crisis to adapt to the situation. As it is outside of their normal range of functioning, it is common to see a struggle to control emotions. This lack of control can lead to suicidal tendencies, substance abuse, trouble with the law and general avoidance of resources available for help. One such resource used to aid an individual in crisis is a social support system, which can come in the form of family, friends, coworkers, or health professionals. It is important that a support system consists of people that the individual trusts. Although these support systems play a crucial role in aiding an individual through a crisis, they are also the underlying cause of two thirds of mental health crises.^[3] The aforementioned mental health crises can include marital issues, abandonment, parental conflict and family struggles.

In order to aid someone in crisis, it is crucial to be able to identify the signs that indicate they are undergoing an internal conflict. These signs, as well as the aforementioned coping mechanisms, include^[4][1]:

• Irrational and/or narrow thinking
• Lowered attention span
• Unclear motives
• Disorganized approach to problem solving
• Resistance to communication
• Inability to differ between large and small issues
• Change/alteration to social networks

In crisis, disequilibrium can occur which is when the individual needs a coping mechanism to deal with the situation. Such coping mechanisms can include: sleep, rejection, physical exercise, meditation and thinking. To assist individuals in regaining emotional equilibrium, intervention can be used. The overall goal of a crisis intervention is to get the individual back to a pre-crisis level of functioning or higher with the help of a social support group. As said by Judith Swan, there's a strong correlation between the client's emotional balance and the trust in their support system in helping them throughout their crisis^[1]. The steps of crisis intervention are: to assess the situation based on behaviour patterns of the individual, decide what type of help is needed (make a plan of action) and finally to take action/intervention, based on the individual's skills to regain equilibrium^[2].

The Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario proposed the ABC model for dealing with client’s interventions in crises^[3]:

A - Basic attending skills (making the person comfortable, remaining calm, etc.)

B - Identifying the problem and therapeutic interaction (explore their perceptions, identify sources of emotional distress, identify impairments in behavioural functioning, use therapeutic interactions)

C - Coping (identify coping attempts, present alternative coping strategies, follow up post-crisis)

Moreover, another method for helping individuals who are suffering in a crisis is active listening; it is defined as seeing circumstances from another perspective and letting the other person know that the negotiator (the helper) understands their perspective. Through this, they establish trust and rapport by demonstrating empathy, understanding and objectivity in a non-judgmental way. It is important for the negotiator to listen to verbal and non-verbal reactions of the person in need, in order to be able to label the emotion that the individual is showing. Thus, this demonstrates that the helper is tuned in emotionally. Furthermore, there are other techniques that can be used to demonstrate actively listening such as: paraphrasing, silence and reflecting or mirroring. The goal in active listening is to keep the person talking about their situation.

Good Evening Crisis Group, as a fellow student I would like to provide feedback on the information presented in your talk page of the article. I will split it into each sub heading and have an overall feedback section as well.

Definition:You made some great additions to the opening, and it allowed be to gain a better understanding of crisis without being too lengthy. Great job! However, I have a few tweaks to mention. In the first sentence, I would incorporate the person, so perhaps "in which the ability for one to cope.." is more appropriate. There is also a small typo in the third line, as which is repeated. Also on line three, the sentence "When one is in a place that is considered to be a crisis situation" the word place would better be expressed as setting. Finally, when stating "There are many ways by which crisis can be detected." it would be beneficial to have at least one example that is later discussed in the article under "Personal". Take my suggestions as you wish, all the best in your edits.

Personal:Awesome content! You really nailed how one can cope and observe themselves during crisis. It looks to me that the first sentence is repeated from the definition addition. Is this purposeful, as in you want to reiterate that point? Change as you wish. In your first to second line of the second paragraph, the sentence "As it is outside of their normal range of functioning, it is common to see a struggle to control emotions." could be considered for review as I found "to see" unnecessary. You could potentially change it to "...it is common to struggle with control over emotions". On the third line of the second paragraph I found "One such resource..." to be very awkward and would suggest removing such, and add often following resource. I really enjoyed reading this section, take my suggestions as you wish. All the best in your edits.

Ways to Manage..: Congrats on your edits, you are almost done! However, I have a few suggestions for you to take as you wish. I found most of the information in this section to be repeated from the section personal, and that may be due to use of same sources. For instance, coping mechanisms and social support group suggestion were aforementioned, and that can be frustrating for a reader so I would suggest collaborating into Personal and maybe renaming it "Personal ways to manage...". I loved the intergration of RNAO's ABC model, and that could be something made separate or brought into collaboration with Personal. Since listening would no longer fit in "Personal ways to manage..." perhaps you could make a nothing sub heading around the idea of listen, perhaps "Benefits of listening in crisis". Finally, titles/subheadings on Wikipedia are to be all lower case after the first word, this was brought to my attention and I thought I would bring it to yours! Great work, take my suggestions as you see fit.

Overall: I found your contributions to be great, and they improved flow and content quality of the article for sure. Your sources look to be credible which is important in Wikipedia's good article criterion. Keep up the good work, and take upon suggestions as you wish. sf13yg (talk) 16:03, 12 November 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Hi, I was looking through the Crisis Wikipedia Article and I found it to be descriptive and informative. However, I think small improvements should be made throughout together in order for it to be understanding. For example, in the Poverty-related section it just gives a link to "Soup Kitchen" which doesn't really elaborate well on that topic. My suggestion is to go more in depth because that is a very important part of an individual who is dealing with crisis. Something I would add to soup kitchen is possibly seeing if there is an increase in soup kitchens compared to when it started and recently. If there is, is there a specific reason for it? Have soup kitchens made individuals in crisis have an improvement in their depression or did it increase because of increased realization? Another point I would add to the article is that give examples of verbal and non-verbal reactions of the person in need so it is easier to recognize and identify if someone is in a crisis and then go forward with using the "ABC" method. These are two main things that need improvement in the article otherwise, everything is well-written and is clear to readers.

Links are provided in the 'Political crisis' section but I think that some information should also be added to the section as in my opinion it makes the section look bare when it has no information in it. Xboxsponge15 (talk) 22:06, 20 November 2019 (UTC)[reply]