The support-control continuum: An investigation of staff perspectives on factors influencing the success or failure of de-escalation techniques for the management of violence and aggression in mental health settings

This paper provides a new model for understanding staff intervention in response to escalated aggression, a continuum between support and control. It further provides a preliminary explanatory framework for understanding the relationship between patient behaviour, staff response and environmental influences on de-escalation success and failure. This framework reveals potentially important behaviour change targets for interventions seeking to reduce violence and use of restrictive practices through enhanced de-escalation techniques.