Ohio CCBD 2009Life Space Crisis Intervention

• Thomas G. Valore, Ph.D.

• Positive Education Program

• 3100 Euclid Ave.

• Cleveland, Ohio 44115

• 216.361.7760 ext. 127

• tvalore@pepcleve.org

ObjectivesParticipants will…• be introduced to the six reclaiming

interventions of LSCI,• be introduced to the six stages of LSCI, and• understand the dynamics of the Conflict

Cycle.

Three Possible Outcomes of a Crisis

Staff-StudentRelationshipIMPROVED

Staff-StudentRelationshipUNCHANGED

Staff-StudentRelationshipDAMAGED

CRISISCRISIS

LSCI Institute

LIFE SPACE CRISIS INTERVENTION

A therapeutic skill which enables us to make the best out of a stressful

student incident when we get the worst of it.

LIFE SPACE CRISIS INTERVENTION

A therapeutic skill which enables us to make the best out of a stressful

student incident when we get the worst of it.

LSCI Institute

The Six Reclaiming Interventions

Reality Rub: Errors in Perception

Red Flag: Imported Problems

New Tools: Poor Social Skills

Symptom Estrangement: Delinquent Pride

Massaging Numb Values: Behavior Driven by Guilt

Manipulation of Body Boundaries: Exploitation of Peers

Cognitive Map of the Six Stages of the LSCI Process

Stage 1

Stage 2

Stage 3

Stage 4

Stage 5

Stage 6

Drain Off

Timeline

Central Issue

Insight

New Skills

Transfer of Training

Staff de-escalating skills to drain off the student;intense feelings while controlling one's counter-aggressive

reactions

Staff relationship skills to obtain and validate the student's perception of the crisis.

Staff diagnostic skills to determine if the crisis represents one of six LSCI patterns of self-defeating behavior

Staff clinical skills to pursue the student's specific pattern of self-defeating behavior for personal insight and accountability

Staff empowering skills to teach the student new social skills to overcome his pattern of self-defeating behavior

Staff consultation and contracting skills to help the student re-enter the classroom and to reinforce and generalize his new social skills

Dia

gnostic S

tages

Recla

imin

g S

tages

THE

SIX LSCIRECAIMING

INTERVENTIONS

Reality Rub

-- Considerable anxiety and confusion about what happened;

-- Distorts reality;

-- Perseverates on one aspect of the event;

-- Arrives at conclusions using faulty thinking;

-- Tests limits;

-- Interviewer uses Conflict Cycle to organize reality.

104LSCI Institute

Red Flag

-- An unusual overreaction; intense feelings and behaviors;

-- Defiant, oppositional, and irrational behaviors;

-- Student "needs" to escalate the crisis into an intense power struggle;

-- Drain off and managing staff counter-aggression are important;

-- Displacement is a feature.

103LSCI Institute

New Tools

-- During the Timeline, identify the student's "right intentions" vs. "wrong behaviors;"

-- The Interviewer makes the connection;

-- Interviewer and student join forces around common goals;

-- Interviewer teaches pro-social behaviors;

-- Interviewer sets up positive reinforcement programs with staff support;

105LSCI Institute

Symptom Estrangement

-- Little difficulty with Drain off or Timeline stages;

-- Little or no observable guilt about behavior;

-- Assumes the role of victim and rationalizes his behavior;

-- Receives secondary group status and power from his aggressive acts;

-- Interviewer uses benign confrontation to create discomfort with cruel behavior.

106

MY WAY OR THE HIGHWAY!

LSCI Institute

-- Considerable anxiety during Drain off and Timeline stages;

-- Interviewer listens for self-abusive statements and guilt;

-- Interviewer looks for signs of self- punishment or setting up others to punish;

-- Note that the major concern at this time is self-abuse--other precipitating issues are secondary;

-- Interviewer logically attacks irrational beliefs;

-- Interviewer affirms all acts of self-control;

-- Interviewer notes staff awareness of positive behavior and gains.

Massaging Numb Values

107LSCI Institute

-- Interviewer begins with the victim;

-- Interviewer determines if this is a "false friendship" or a "set up;"

-- Note that if the victim is aggressive, it is likely he was set up (usually by a bright, passive aggressive peer);

-- If false friendship, student are interviewed together -- if set up, students are seen separately;

-- Interviewer exposes the manipulation.

108

Manipulation of Body Boundaries

LSCI Institute

COGNITIVE THEORY

Stream of Consciousness: Continuous flow of observation and thought in the present.

Perceptual Set: Fundamental beliefs based on personal history.

Active Self-Talk: Conscious internal dialogue filtered by the Perceptual Set.

LSCI Institute

What kids believe about themselves is

more important in determining behavior than

any facts about them.

LSCI Institute

Thre

e

Foundations of LS

CIPERCEIVING THINKING

FEELING AND BEHAVING: UNDERSTANDING THE

DIFFFERENCES IN PSYCHOLOGICAL WORLDS

Developing the Art of Listening: Attending Responding Decoding

LSCI Institute

Understanding the Dynamics of the Conflict Cycle

Staff ReactionsStudent

Reactions

PerceivingDiverse

MultidimensionalConcrete

One Dimensional

ThinkingLogical

Cognitvely-Based

Illogical Omnipotent

Irrational Trap

FeelingAccepts and

ControlsFlooded

Explosive

BehavingAccepts

Responsibility for Behavior

Does Not Accept Responsibility for Behavior

The Difference in Psychological Worlds Between a Student in Stress

and a Helping Staff

LSCI Institute

13LSCI Institute

THE

SIX STAGES OF LSCI

Most troubled students

want to tell their story

but lack the necessary skills and

trust.

LSCI Institute

Cognitive Map of the Six Stages of the LSCI Process

Stage 1

Stage 2

Stage 3

Stage 4

Stage 5

Stage 6

Drain Off

Timeline

Central Issue

Insight

New Skills

Transfer of Training

Staff de-escalating skills to drain off the student;intense feelings while controlling one's counter-aggressive

reactions

Staff relationship skills to obtain and validate the student's perception of the crisis.

Staff diagnostic skills to determine if the crisis represents one of six LSCI patterns of self-defeating behavior

Staff clinical skills to pursue the student's specific pattern of self-defeating behavior for personal insight and accountability

Staff empowering skills to teach the student new social skills to overcome his pattern of self-defeating behavior

Staff consultation and contracting skills to help the student re-enter the classroom and to reinforce and generalize his new social skills

Dia

gnostic S

tages

Recla

imin

g S

tages

DRAIN OFF 1

Drain off the student’s intense

emotions by acknowledgin

g feelings.

DRAIN OFF

TIMELINE

1

2

By using affirming and

listening skills, discover the

student’s point of view.

DRAIN OFF

TIMELINE

1

2

CENTRAL ISSUE 3

Identify the student’s vital interest and select the

appropriate LSCI Reclaiming

Intervention.

DRAIN OFF

TIMELINE

1

2

CENTRAL ISSUE 3

INSIGHT 4

Use one of the Reclaiming

Interventions to to help the

student recognize his pattern

of self defeating behavior.

DRAIN OFF

TIMELINE

1

2

CENTRAL ISSUE 3

INSIGHT 4

NEW SKILLS 5

Teach the new skills which lead to more responsible behavior.

DRAIN OFF

TIMELINE

1

2

CENTRAL ISSUE 3

INSIGHT 4

NEW SKILLS 5

TRANSFER OF TRAINING

6

Prepare the student to re-enter the

ongoing activity and

setting.

Thre

e

Foundations of LS

CI

Perceiving Thinking Feeling Behaving: Understanding the Differences in

Psychological Worlds

Developing the Art of Listening: Attending Responding Decoding

LSCI Institute

UNDERSTANDING THE DYNAMICS OF

THE CONFLICT CYCLE

LSCI Institute

THE CONFLICT CYCLE

1STRESSFUL

EVENT

2STUDENT'S FEELINGS

3STUDENT'S

OBSERVABLE BEHAVIOR

4ADULT/PEERREACTIONS

STUDENT'S SELF CONCEPT

IRRATIONAL BELIEFS

14

LSCI Institute

Haim Ginott

Kids in stress create in adults

their feelings, and if not trained, the

adults will mirror their behavior.

LSCI Institute

Remember, during crisis, act like a thermostat, not like a thermometer!

LSCI InstituteLSCI Institute

BREAKING THE CONFLICT

CYCLE

1STRESSFUL

EVENT

2STUDENT'S FEELINGS

3STUDENT'S

OBSERVABLE BEHAVIOR

4ADULT/PEERREACTIONS

28LSCI Institute

BREAKING THE CONFLICT CYCLE:

CREATING A RECLAIMING

ENVIRONMENT

Changing the Conflict Cycle to a Coping Cycle

• Think Conflict Cycle

• Use Self-Talk

• Stop “YOU” Messages

• Use “I” Messages

• Post the Conflict Cycle

• Teach the Conflict Cycle