Managing a Crisis for School Security
Apr 1, 2011 12:00 PM, By William F. Badzmierowski
Considering human factors in crisis communication plans.
Education institutions should train staff to respond appropriately in the event of a crisis situation.
In recent years, campus tragedies across the country have prompted leaders of education institutions to redouble their crisis planning efforts.
Too often, however, these emergency plans focus almost exclusively on facilities, hardware and systems without sufficient consideration for the people they potentially affect. People, not equipment, will bring an end to an emergency and help save lives.
Different people react in crisis in different ways, but there are many ways to prepare and encourage them to take the most effective action. Crisis communications planning is essential and should focus on the critical human element in a school’s crisis management approach.
Planning for a Broad Range of Crises
A crisis involves a situation or event that is experienced or perceived as intolerably difficult and may exceed typically available resources, personnel, procedures and coping mechanisms. Despite the fact that every specific emergency can’t be anticipated, effective communication in any crisis involves extensive planning, preparation and training. Schools might experience fires, severe weather, natural disasters, civil unrest, major system or equipment failure, food poisoning, pandemic and even violence. Some events may be unique to a particular school, building or campus, while others could happen anywhere at any time.
Crisis response plans should provide direction to involved stakeholders during and after a crisis event. Careful thought needs to be given in advance to address specific "hardware considerations" in communicating vital information to students, faculty, staff and others directly involved in a crisis event on campus.
Plans should include procedures for the rapid identification of potentially harmful situations and the methods for responding to situations quickly and effectively. They also need to address initial and ongoing information-sharing with key internal and external stakeholders.
How Will People React?
Among many other issues, advance planning efforts need to address "hardware considerations" in effectively facilitating people’s response during an emergency. Hardware includes a school’s buildings, equipment, location, systems and contents. As much as possible, these hardware factors need to support the human factors involved in any crisis response.
Human behavior during any crisis may be much different than we might expect. Contrary to popular belief, most people are resilient. They seldom respond completely irrationally during crises. We’ve all seen the headlines about people panicking or becoming hysterical during emergencies. The reality is that individuals experience both productive and unproductive responses to crises. In the immediate moments following a major crisis, people frequently experience anxiety, fear, confusion and disbelief. Hysteria and panic are rarely seen. A situation may be abnormal, but, in general, people’s reactions are not.
A far more common reaction is for affected individuals to first attempt to ensure their own safety and welfare. Many will then make every effort to help others. This behavior has been well-documented in high-profile emergencies worldwide. This occurred in the immediate aftermath of both the Columbine and Virginia Tech shootings.
Productive responses during an emergency include a sudden increase in physical strength and sensory acuity and a dramatic decrease in reaction time. This is especially true when the involved individuals have been properly trained in response procedures. Some of the more unproductive responses may include overreactions that may further result in an inappropriate response. People sometimes freeze when they should be taking action.
Although most people respond reasonably well during crises, this does not mean that their actions and reactions automatically will be efficient and orderly. Often, an individual’s own resources are concentrated heavily on imminent physical and emotional safety and survival. The individual may not immediately recall routines and details. External structure and systems may need to help in guiding the individual’s next steps.
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