Tips for Managing Unpredictable Behaviour

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This calls for more 'defensive behaviour', akin to the driving behaviour known as 'defensive driving'. This is based on the premise that most accidents happen when two cars try to occupy the same space. Therefore the defensive driver will try to ensure that sufficient space between his or her car and others' is maintained, and that his or her speed, road position and level of alertness will minimise the possibility of being involved in an accident. For example...

If you anticipate that you are likely to meet unpredictable behaviour, then you should certainly be taking whatever precautions you can - as a matter of policy, as often as possible. Thus it should be only in the most exceptional circumstances that staff should be untraceable and unsupportable to the extent that no one knows where they are, when they are likely to return, and what to do if they don't.

Although we know we should not stereotype, we would be foolish if we did not learn the lesson of previous experience with a customer, a family, a neighbourhood or a block of flats. Never ignore any customer's history of upsetting or dangerous behaviour on the grounds that it was a long time ago or that they have promised to turn over a new leaf.

When you become aware that someone is behaving unpredictably, think 'defensively', i.e. think more about yourself and your safety than the job that you are supposed to be doing at the time; go on full alert immediately. If you are wrong or if things settle back to normal, you can then relax and give more attention to the job in hand.

Trust your intuition; it may be the only warning you'll get that something is not quite as it should be. Remember that men have intuition as well as women; it is probably called 'women's intuition' because women appear to trust it more than men. It is certainly difficult to justify your concerns to a superior on the basis of intuition and we can be left feeling somewhat exposed to criticism as we try to explain that we did what we did because of a 'feeling'. Despite this difficulty, our intuition should be trusted.

If ever there was a time to keep your distance, this is it. The incident with the knife at someone's throat would not have happened if the aggressor had not got close enough. If the door from the waiting-room to the reception office had been locked, no one would have wandered in.

Be sure you are aware of where the exit is, and that you have as easy access to it as possible. Give some thought, prior to any incident occurring, to any alternative exit, e.g. could a receptionist escape from someone within the reception office by climbing over the reception counter? Try it.

Don't become too absorbed in your job. It may be important that you keep one eye on where people are, what they are doing, what potential weapons are about, etc. Hence the advantage of a colleague's company: he or she can be monitoring the safety aspects while you can be getting on with the job, or vice versa.

For more strategies regarding managing unpredictable behaviour, please see 'The New ABC of Handling Aggression', by Willie More.

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