Aimed at helping criminal justice professionals develop the skills required to defuse and resolve a variety of crisis situations, the book examines specific types of crises, analyzes their causes and how people react to them, and describes techniques for "taking charge" of such situations. The book opens with a discussion of five major approaches to crisis intervention: the mental health advocate or counseling, the biological or medical, the psychiatric, the psychological, and the social. This is followed by the description of an integrated approach that uses aspects of each of the five major approaches. An examination of the characteristics of crisis situations identifies crisis behaviors and the typical flow of a crisis. A discussion of aspects of crisis intervention addresses communication in crisis situations, the components of intervention, and crisis intervention with victims. Attention is given to techniques for intervening with the bereaved, those contemplating suicide, the elderly, victims of violence, and those involved in domestic disputes. The concluding chapter addresses the occupational stress experienced by crisis intervenors. A 200-item bibliography, subject index.