Dealing with Confrontation - Effects of Action and Inaction

When a person faces a confrontational situation their reaction may depend upon a number of factors including confidence in their ability to deal with the incident, their personal commitment to preserving their own safety and the options they identify as being available at the time of the incident.

As police we are frequently called upon to offer advice to community members in relation to appropriate actions to take when an individual’s personal safety is threatened. Whilst the availability of one ‘set’ answer would be comforting to many, the reality is that no-one can provide one safety option that will work with 100 percent effectiveness in 100 percent of situations. Rather, it is important to emphasise that an individual involved in such a confrontation needs to be aware of a wide range of personal safety options, in order to draw upon those that they feel will best preserve their safety in the given situation.

This section will address the following issues:

• The importance of taking ‘action’ as opposed to ‘inaction’ to deal with a threat to our personal safety; and
• The three major factors that assist in determining appropriate safety options in any given situation. These being:
  1. the personal strengths and weaknesses of the defender;
  2. the perceived motivations for the attack/confrontation; and
     
  3. any relevant environmental factors accompanying the attack.

Further to the above issues, this section will also outline a number of specific actions which may be utilised in a confrontational situation. This will be done in order to provide community members with a range of effective safety options for use, should their personal safety ever be threatened.

Effects of Action and Inaction

It is imperative that police provide quality advice to community members in relation to the options that may be available in the event of a confrontational situation. It may also be beneficial to provide an explanation of the probable consequences of taking some action to stop the attack and/or preserve personal safety, as opposed to the consequences of inaction.

At this stage, it is important to note that, for the purposes of personal safety, there is a significant difference between ‘choosing to take no action’ and ‘inaction’ - with the former comprising a valid ‘action’.

To explain, by ‘choosing to take no action’ an individual has made a conscious choice in the belief that the action of doing nothing will keep them safest at that particular time. In contrast, inaction occurs when an individual finds themselves ‘helpless’ and surrendering to an attacker because they do not have the personal confidence or commitment to identify what their best options are.

Actions that may be effective in confrontational situations include:

• escaping e.g. by running away;
• physical self defence;
• waiting for an opportunity or creating a diversion (taking no action)- and then escaping;
• doing whatever the attacker tells you to do (taking no action) - and then waiting for an opportunity to escape;
• screaming;
• negotiating with the attacker; and/or
• using a weapon to disable the attacker and escape.

Both action and inaction have a number of probable outcomes, which are outlined as follows:

Probable Outcomes of Taking Action:

• Defender (intended victim) is able to decide on the best option to keep them the most safe at the time;
• Defender is more likely to view themselves as a survivor (rather than a victim) following the incident;
• Defender is more likely to report the incident to the police;
  doing whatever the attacker tells you to do (taking no action) - and then waiting for an opportunity to escape;
• Defender is more likely to:
  1. escape;
  2. stop the Attack;
  3. injure/disable the attacker; and
  4. attract attention and assistance.

Probable Outcomes of Inaction:

• It is up to the attacker to determine the fate of the victim;
• The attack is more likely to ensue;
• The attacked person is more likely to view themselves as a victim (rather than a survivor) following the incident;
• The attacked person is more likely to blame themselves for the attack, and experience greater effects of the attack
• Physical, psychological, emotional etc.; and
• The attacked person is less likely to report the matter to police.