5 ABA Backed Crisis Management Strategies for Residential Settings

Navigating the unpredictable seas of residential management can often feel akin to steering a ship through both placid and perilous waters. It's a journey where calm seas can swiftly turn into formidable tempests, challenging the very integrity of your vessel—the foundational systems you've put in place. Picture your residential setting as a sturdy ship gliding across the ocean. The construction of your ship, much like the structure of your management systems, must be robust and meticulously planned. Your crew, analogous to your employees, must be well-trained, knowledgeable, and ready to handle the wheel and sails with expertise when the skies darken and the waves swell.

As a seasoned captain with a keen understanding of behavior analysis, you know that the effectiveness of your leadership and the training of your crew are what prevent the chaos of the storm from turning into a disaster. A well-prepared crew knows their roles, communicates clearly, and moves with purpose, just as employees in a residential setting must when faced with crisis. The principles of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) provide the navigational charts and instruments that guide you, ensuring that every action taken is purposeful and scientifically grounded.

When the gales howl and the tempest threatens to overwhelm, here are five ABA-backed approaches for crisis management in residential settings that will keep your ship from capsizing, allowing you to sail out of the storm stronger and more united than before.

Antecedent Strategies – The ounce of prevention:

Before a crisis even whispers its arrival, ABA teaches us to look at antecedents, the environmental factors that can trigger a situation. In residential settings, a fundamental approach focuses on daily interactions that strengthen positive relationships. However, there are many other strategies that are unique to the context that are part of the antecedent puzzle. For example, an antecedent strategy could mean regular checking communal areas for potential hazards, ensuring clear communication channels, and establishing protocols that residents know and understand. By modifying surroundings and creating preventive measures, one can reduce the likelihood of a crisis occurring in the first place. And, of course, ensuring people are well trained in all levels of crisis management, from prevention and de-escalation to management and re-integration.

De-escalation Techniques – Calm within the storm:

When tensions rise, ABA provides us with de-escalation tactics that focus on reducing arousal levels and encouraging calm. This can range from employing non-confrontational body language, using a soothing tone of voice, to redirecting negative behaviors before they escalate. Like a skilled sailor navigating choppy seas, a trained individual can steer a situation away from the rocks of conflict through these behavior modification techniques.

Safety Protocols – The life rafts ready:

Safety is paramount, and ABA emphasizes the importance of having clear, rehearsed plans in place. This step involves training residents and staff on emergency procedures, having evacuation routes clearly marked and unobstructed, and ensuring that everyone knows their role when a crisis hits. It's about having the life rafts ready and everyone knowing how to use them.

Reinforcement Systems – The North Star guiding back to normalcy:

After a crisis, it's vital to reinforce positive behaviors that will help return to normalcy. This could involve recognizing individuals who followed protocols effectively, providing additional support to those who need it, and reinforcing the community's strength for getting through the challenge. Just as the North Star guides sailors home, a reinforcement system helps guide residents back to the tranquility of their daily lives.

Post-Crisis Analysis – Learning from the storm:

Once the immediate danger has passed, it's critical to review and analyze the crisis management process. ABA supports the idea of continuous improvement through reflection and data analysis. What worked? What didn't? How can the community better prepare for next time? This step is about turning experience into wisdom that fortifies against future crises.

In crafting these approaches, remember, the goal isn't just to survive the storm but to emerge more united and resilient than before. By integrating ABA principles into crisis management, residential settings can not only weather the storm but also harness it, using the experience as a powerful catalyst for growth and positive change.

Not All Systems Were Created Equal

As we tie off our nautical narrative, let's not forget an essential truth: Not all crisis management systems, even those constructed on the sturdy framework of Applied Behavior Analysis, are crafted equally. The sea of crisis management systems is vast, and while many ships set sail with the promise of stability, only a select few are truly sea-worthy when the gales hit.

There exists one system that charts a course unlike any other: Professional Crisis Management (PCM). It distinguishes itself by embracing fluency-based strategies, utilizing natural body positions, and placing a robust emphasis on skill teaching and prevention. This system is propelled by the powerful currents of positive reinforcement, even amidst the eye of a storm, rather than merely starting at de-escalation.

PCM is the beacon of hope for many organizations navigating the treacherous waters of crisis situations, offering a lifeline that is both scientifically sound and ethically anchored. If your residential setting is seeking a harbor in the midst of a tempest, or if you simply wish to build a ship worthy of the high seas of human behavior, reach out to [email protected]. Our dedicated team of behavior analysts is standing by, ready to equip you with the sails of skill and the compass of compassion, ensuring that when the waves rise, you and your crew will not just survive, but thrive.

Check out PCMA's YouTube Channel for more content related to preventing and managing behavior!

About the Author

Specializing in human performance, coaching, and organizational leadership, Dr. Paul "Paulie" Gavoni is a behavior scientist and educator who has worked across education and human services for almost three decades. In this capacity, he has served the needs of children and adults through various positions, including COO, Vice President, Director of School Improvement, Leadership Director, Professor, Assistant Principal, School Turnaround Manager, Clinical Coordinator, Therapist, District Behavior Analyst, and Director of Progam Development and Public Relations at PCMA. Dr. Gavoni is passionate about applying Organizational Behavior Management (OBM), or the science of human behavior, to make a positive difference in establishing safe, productive, and engaging environments that bring out the best in faculty and staff so they can bring out the best in the learners they serve. He is an active board member of the Opioid Awareness Foundation and World Behavior Analysis Day Alliance.

Known for his authenticity and practical approaches, Dr. Gavoni is the host of the Top 1.5% globally ranked Crisis in Education Podcast and a sought-out speaker at various Educational and Behavior Analytic Conferences Internationally. He a the Wall Street Journal and USA Today best-selling co-author of The Scientific Laws of Life & Leadership: Behavioral Karma; Quick Wins! Accelerating School Transformation through Science, Engagement, and Leadership; Deliberate Coaching: A Toolbox for Accelerating Teacher Performance; and MMA Science: A Training, Coaching, and Belt Ranking Guide. Dr. Gavoni is proud to introduce OBM and Applied Behavior Analysis to worldwide audiences through his numerous publications and his work with PCMA to create productive, safe, and positive cultures.

Beyond his work in education and human services, Dr. Gavoni is also a former Golden Gloves Heavyweight Champion and a highly respected striking coach in combat sports. Coach “Paulie Gloves,” as he is known in the Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) community, has trained world champions and UFC vets using technologies rooted in the behavioral sciences. Coach Paulie has been featured in the books Beast: Blood, Struggle, and Dreams a the Heart of Mixed Martial Arts, A Fighter’s Way, and the featured article Ring to Cage: How four former boxers help mold MMA’s finest. He is also an author who has written extensively for various online magazines such as Scifighting, Last Word on Sports, and Bloody Elbow, where his Fight Science series continues to bring behavioral science to MMA. Finally, Paulie was also a featured fighter in FX’s highest-rated show at the time, The Toughman, and as an MMA coach in the Lifetime reality series Leave it to Geege.