Effective De-escalation for Corrections Personnel
/Tactics for Influencing Uncooperative Inmates into Compliance
By Efren Almodovar and Lou Savelli
Anyone who has worked behind the walls in a jail or correctional facility fully understands the problems and dangers associated with uncooperative inmates as well as the importance of possessing effective de-escalation skills. Being locked in with inmates who have already shown a disdain toward the law, along with gangs and inmates with mental illness, corrections officers though unarmed and outnumbered, must arm themselves with superior communication and de-escalation abilities. However, unlike street police officers, corrections officers may have more information about the inmates and have many opportunities to observe the inmates. With extensive corrections experience, we have dealt with many inmates at their worst and learned to rely more on our communication skills than physical force. Here are our suggestions for de-escalation success when dealing with inmates.
To be a successful resolver of conflict, whether it involves inmate-on-inmate altercations or inmate versus staff, I try to rely on listening skills. Learning from the inmate and identifying what is causing his agitation and combativeness contributes to the creation of a plan of communication and action. Also relying on learning about the inmate’s charges, family, and prior issues in the facility can help greatly. The more insight into the uniqueness of an inmate, the more it will assist with creating a more effective approach to de-escalation.
Along with strong listening skills, it is critical to have effective communication. Inmates, like others, respond better when you speak to them and not at them. Coupled with listening skills, communication becomes more effective and has a better chance of positive responses. A better way of carrying yourself behind the walls, and as I personally prefer, is to be personable. This builds a good reputation among the inmates and causes inmates to be far less resistant when you give them direction and orders. A personable correction officer is more approachable and will often be asked to discuss many topics with the inmates. Since so much time is spent interacting with the inmate population, it is common to be asked advice or legal questions. Other times, corrections officers may have to act like a social worker and help inmates resolve their own inner conflict or deal with issues involving family, depression and the frustration associated with incarceration. This information is valuable for better understanding an inmate and knowing what words and language work best.
The effectiveness of respect can never be overstated. Respect should always be the M.O. (Modus Operandi), of any corrections officer and it will undoubtedly help de-escalate, and as equally important, prevent situations from becoming more intense. To complement respect, it will help for officers to keep their word. When you give your word, you should keep it. Inmates rely on small promises they look forward to and can be disappointed if the promise is not kept, especially from a respected officer. Some inmates may not have strong support or frequent connection from their families. Therefore, they will be counting on you to follow through. Honesty may seem like a strange word when discussing inmates in a correctional setting, but it can go a long way with furthering respect. When dealing with inmates, even at their worst, I recommend an honest approach and honest answers. When an inmate, or anyone for that matter, learns you have lied to them, you lose their respect and your credibility.
Accordingly, listening, communication and respect are not the only methods which should be used for de-escalating potentially volatile incidents behind the walls. Simple, yet effective, tactics can be used to further de-escalation efforts and success. To name only a few, here are my “go to” methods. First, don’t meet shouting and anger with the same. People, even inmates, tend to tire out from shouting their issues or demands. They also gain fuel from a similar response from an officer. Keep in mind, there is no good reason to try to shout over an irate person. It makes it worse, it escalates the problem, and it makes a professional officer look bad. Second, control your body language. Always be safe, maintain a safe distance, but it is not necessary to get into a fighting stance and exacerbate the situation because the inmate thinks you want to fight. You can easily defend yourself from a non-threatening, tactically sound demeanor and stance. In our training consortium, a group of police officers, corrections officers and other professionals call this tactically non-threatening. The concept, essentially, is defined as looking like you are not threatening or getting excited, but you are immediately ready to defend or go on the offensive effectively. In fact, as mentioned before, getting into a fighting stance can escalate a situation unnecessarily.
More useful tactics, in the furtherance of de-escalating someone or a situation, can include strategically crafted words, phrases or questions. This tactic, taken from our tactical communication techniques, not only works well with inmates in a confrontational mode, but it also fosters a dialogue many inmates want to continue after the incident. For example, asking a highly agitated inmate who refuses to go back to his cell, “Why don’t you tell me what you are thinking right now so you and I can solve this problem?” The inmate expects a confrontational response or a group manpower response to achieve his goal of showing off or proving his courage. By asking the right question and showing your interest in his feelings, you have a better chance of avoiding resistance and gaining cooperation from the inmate. Yes, there are always going to be those times and those inmates who may have to be defused by force, but force should always be a last resort.
While there are many, many more tactics for de-escalation for corrections officers to use, I will only add one more for this article. This tactic is referred to as the “Subconscious Leverage Tactic” (SLT). The SLT is a question asked of the inmate, or other person, to provoke deeper thought when the inmate is in a resistant mode. The SLT is a combination of a subconscious question asked to the inmate to stimulate his cognitive (thought) processes while your (officer’s) body language changes to a relaxed body language position at the time the inmate starts to respond. This tactic works to influence the inmate to think of the ramifications of his uncooperative or volatile ways while your body language is influencing his body language to relax or become submissive. Most inmates will respond to this technique, making them easier to communicate with and less committed to a confrontation. To illustrate this technique, I will refer to an interview with a highly confrontational and hard-core inmate who refused to sit down in a chair during the interview. The inmate was completely closed off, body language and verbally to the conversation. One officer asked the inmate, “How could your time in prison go easier and less uncomfortable?” The other officer, standing closer to the inmate, placed himself into the same body language position and mirrored the inmate’s stance, crossed arms, and facial expression. As the inmate fully absorbed the question and subconsciously visualized how he could spend easier time in prison, he would not answer the question. As the closer officer observed the slight change in the inmate’s behavior, he uncrossed his arms and sat down in the chair. The inmate immediately sat down in his chair and his negative demeanor changed drastically. The interview went successfully from that moment on.
Though not every incident can be de-escalated, nor be a win/win, we should always learn from our mistakes and ensure we don’t repeat them. As corrections officers, we have plenty of tools at our disposal and we need to use all that is available to resolve issues peacefully. Our best tools are, without a doubt, people skills and the tactics, among others, discussed in this article. De-escalation is a strategy as well as a technique which involves multiple available tactics. The more tactics you have, the more effective you can perform. Be safe!
