Individuals suffering from psychiatric or substance abuse disorders sometimes display any one of a number of frightening behaviors: verbal outbursts, physical threats and even violence. Parole and probation officers must deal with such individuals on a frequent basis. In this comprehensive guidebook, Ellis Amdur and Alan Pelton offer parole and probation officers a comprehensive set of strategies to keep themselves as well as the general public safe, while functioning at the highest level of professionalism.
They then move on to the heart of the book, discussing specific behaviors ranging from confusion and obsessive concerns to psychosis, mania and acute disorganization. In one very important section, they discuss interactions with opportunistic and manipulative individuals (at worst, those referred to as psychopaths), people who present a danger to the psychological and physical well being of anyone with whom they come in contact. They then move on to a discussion of aggression, whether directed at the parole or probation officer or others. There is a specific section set aside on dealing with aggressive youthful offenders. Amdur and Pelton discuss how to de-escalate aggressive and chaotic individuals once a crisis is in play. The authors elucidate the various motivations that drive aggression and further delineate the different types of aggression that result. De-escalation tactics are specific - one learns how to immediately recognize what mode of aggression the person is displaying, and then, one can quickly and effectively implement the de-escalation tactics that are best suited to deal with the aggression one is facing.
