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Rapid Identification of Potential Aggression

RIPA, the Rapid Identification of Potential Aggression is a training program designed to inhibit violence in aggression-prone situations much more safely and effectively than existing programs.

The typical existing program identifies the physical and behavioral symptoms associated with imminent aggression. This results in several limitations for its usefulness and effectiveness.
The symptoms watched for are signs that the autonomic nervous system (ANS) is activated. The ANS is the fight or flight response the brain activates when we have reason to believe there is a threat.

Once this is activated, the rational thinking process is shut off and the progression toward greater anger and violence is well underway. As a result the time available for de-escalation is very limited, the rational mind is on vacation and the amygdala is marshaling its forces to either attack or retreat. Depending upon which direction it selected is a toss up, but neither respond well to logic.

Once the amygdala is in charge, logical de-escalation tactics are less likely to work and there is little time available for de-escalation tactics to have an effect before the flashpoint between anger and aggression is crossed.
In most situations a person becomes angry and aggressive after a series of emotions have progressed from one level to another and eventually morphed into aggressive anger. RIPA is based on the idea that you can identify these pre-anger emotions, and at that point do two things:

1. Watch for signs of emotional escalation of the precursor emotion be it fear or anger, etc. Once these early stages are identified, there’s a greater time frame for de-escalation before the trigger point of aggression occurs.
   Provide “intervention” that detours the emotion presently displayed so that anger is avoided.
2. This does not deny the usefulness of the other anti-aggression intervention programs; RIPA simply provides more alternatives on how to avoid reaching the point of aggression at a much earlier stage than is currently available.
   The RIPA program can be particularly useful for those who deal in high stress, potentially dangerous career fields such as emergency room staff, law enforcement, TSA agents, social workers and more.

Contact us for more information about RIPA and to schedule training sessions for your employees.