The Surrender Ritual

After working for many hours, or even days, the conclusion of a crisis and hostage incident can be incredibly tense and stressful.  Wanting to avoid any pitfalls that could derail the negotiation, the negotiator has to avoid the desire to move quickly with the subject turning him or herself voluntarily over to the authorities.

The following article by Dr. Laurence Miller from PoliceOne.com describes more about the "surrender ritual":

Anatomy of an Abduction

Among the interesting tidbits in this is the high reward for engaging in terrorist-related kidnappings this while also, like this infographic shows, there was little or no planning. 

With little planning, an ill-equipped group of Islamic extremists succeeded in kidnapping 32 European citizens in the Algerian desert in 2003, holding them for up to six months and ransoming them for 5 million euros.

Communicating Effectively for Successful Hostage Negotiations & Crisis Intervention

Enjoy the following paper written by James L. Greenstone.

Here's the abstract:

Whether it is a barricaded crisis situation or negotiations with a bad actor holding hostages, the keys to success are the skills of the negotiator or intervener to effectively communicate.

Little else matters if communications is not established, maintained and utilized in such a way that management of the instant situation becomes possible.

Most negotiators think that they are effective communicators.

 Some are. 

Many are not.

Communications must be practiced over and over again to assure proficiency.  This article provides the rudiments of the skills needed for success in the field.

Read the full article [HERE]. 

Job Opening at the UN

HOSTAGE SURVIVAL INSTRUCTOR – SSAFE TRAINING

To apply and for questions, visit [HERE]. 

Location :	Nairobi, KENYA
Application Deadline :	17-Jul-14
Additional Category	Crisis Prevention and Recovery
Type of Contract :	Individual Contract
Post Level :	International Consultant
Languages Required :	English
Starting Date : (date when the selected candidate is expected to start)	01-Sep-2014
Duration of Initial Contract :	12 months
Expected Duration of Assignment :	12 months (3 –year retainer basis)

Background

In 2004, a proposal for strengthening and unifying the United Nations security management system was presented to the 59th session of the General Assembly in Report A/59/365 of 11 October 2004. This resulted in the adoption of General Assembly Resolution (A/RES/59/276, XI, 7 - 23 December 2004) that created the Department of Safety and Security merging the security management component of the Office of the United Nations Security Coordinator (UNSECOORD), the Security and Safety Services (SSS) and the civilian security component of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) into a single security management framework.

Your Stress is Contagious

Crisis and hostage negotiators- your verbal and nonverbal actions are contagious.  As "guides" in assisting people involved in a crisis, you can help or hinder them on their journey.

Sometimes your actions and words spoken are purposely done, yet other times unknowingly you "leak" out anxiety, stress, and discomfort.

In This Corner: If It's Broke, Don't Fix It

By Lynne Kinnucan

If It's Broke, Don't Fix It...

At least not right away. Hostage negotiators will tell you that resolving the problem is the last thing they do. Before you solve any problem, you must reach the person inside it: the furious, out-of-control man with a gun, the shadowy figure ready to jump off a bridge.

Enter the Active Listening Skills, “law enforcement’s most powerful nonlethal weapon”. Derek Gaunt drills them into his trainees “every single day, from the afternoon of their first day to the day they graduate from the advanced class. I want these skills ingrained in them.”

Research on First Impressions & Tone

In a follow-up to my previous post on how important a negotiator's tone of voice is (Quick Tip: Hostage Negotiator's Tone of Voice), I came across this:

How To Make The Perfect First Impression (According To Science)

The tone and tenor of your voice also plays a significant role in determining what kind of first impression you make on others. A Scottish study found that participants overwhelmingly agreed, based on hearing a subject's voice, on a number of personality judgements, including trustworthiness, aggressiveness, and warmth. 

“[Psychologists] have confirmed that people do make snap judgments when they hear someone’s voice,” Drew Rendall, a psychologist at the University of Lethbridge, told Science Mag. “And the judgments are made on very slim evidence.”

Research studies demonstrate how important first impressions are and it's one of the reasons a main component of PhD explores this with mediators.  

Additionally, I am doing another study with law enforcement hostage negotiators and how they do their introduction (hint: the training manual suggestions are not consistent).

Read the full article at Huffington Post here.

What I Learned About Social Leadership & Listening From a Hostage Negotiator

In her latest diary entry, Eugenie explains what charity leaders can learn from hostage negotiators

As social leaders, we ask a lot of questions. What can I do to help? What do people need? What's my place in the world? But, what I've learned recently is: we should be asking far fewer questions.

As part of the Clore Social Leadership Programme that I'm on, we get training opportunities that we might not otherwise either know about or afford.

I got it into my head that I wanted to do some unusual training with unusual leaders and tracked down former hostage negotiator Dick Mullender. I confess, I was sold on the name alone and arranged a workshop on the art of listening and negotiation.

Dick Mullender

It was some of the best training I've been on. Mullender straight off challenged us on what we think it really means to listen…

Read more from The Guardian [HERE]. 

The Real Bergdahl Error

I came across this article talking about the recent negotiation involving Sgt. Bergdahl and crisis / hostage negotiation in general and I thought everyone would find of interest.

From the article:

Truth was the hostage negotiator’s sidearm. Hostage negotiators did not promise what they could not deliver if there was a chance that the terrorists would capitulate. NYPD Detective Captain, Frank Bolz, arguably the best hostage negotiator of his time, said, success is when everyone -- including the terrorist -- walks out alive. 

Why was truth so important?…

Read the full article by Abraham H. Miller at AmericanThinker.com [HERE]. 

Is It Right To Ever Negotiate With Terrorists? (Via USA Today)

The White House recently negotiated the release of the Sgt. Bergdahl, a U.S. soldier stationed in Afghanistan,  who had been held captive for more than five years.  In reply, five detainees from Guantanamo Bay were release to the Qatari Government.  The Qatari government acted as a mediator/in-between during the negotiations. 

The following article from USA Today by Alan Gomez is worth reading.  Below is a snippet:

"I fear that the administration's decision to negotiate with the Taliban for Sgt. Bergdahl's release could encourage future terrorist kidnappings of Americans," Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said Sunday in a statement.

But security experts like Bruce Hoffman, director of Georgetown University's Center for Security Studies, said that however common the refrain "we do not negotiate with terrorists" has become, it is "repeated as mantra more than fact."

"We have long negotiated with terrorists...

Read the full story [HERE]. 

This past April we collaborated with ADRhub.com to co-host Crisis Negotiation Month.  As part of it, we shared numerous articles on negotiating with terrorists.  See the articles [HERE]. 

In This Corner: Crisis Intervention in Communities- Provocative Dissonance and Other Strategies

By Lynne Kinnucan

Linda Colburn was nicknamed the Red Adair of community crisis intervention for her willingness to intervene in on-scene disruptions and for her unique strategies in pushing them through to resolution. In a telephone interview from Hawaii, she walked us through how talk works, whether it’s when she’s called to a breaking crisis or when she’s slogging through a year-long facilitation with multiple angry stakeholders. 

The situations are different, but her emphasis is always the same: helping people make choices about how they engage and how they will handle future conflicts. And then she designs processes that will elevate their skill sets going forward. This transformative emphasis, she says, is critical for people who have to coexist after their disputes have been settled.

Here is Linda on one of her transformative devices: Provocative Dissonance.

Quick Tip: Hostage Negotiator's Tone of Voice

Crisis and hostage negotiator's are involved in situations that are tense, stressful, and anxiety-filled.  In order to try to reduce the overwhelming emotions being experienced by the person they are trying to help, the negotiator's tone of voice is an important tool that can help move the conversation toward a peaceful resolution.

According to Strentz (2012, p.81), after interviewing numerous hostage takers, a theme that emerged was that frequently the hostage takers could not recall the specific things the negotiator said to them that contributed to them turning him or herself in. What they did remember however was the tone of voice of the negotiator- it was one of concern for them as a victim and in need of help.

Top 10 FBI Behavioral Unit Techniques for Building Rapport With Anyone

Robin Dreeke

(From Time.com) Robin Dreeke is head of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Behavioral Analysis Program.

In his book It’s Not All About “Me”: The Top Ten Techniques for Building Quick ... he simply and clearly spells out methods for connecting with people.

1) Establish artificial time constraints

Nobody wants to feel trapped in an awkward conversation with a stranger...

Yes, I am sure you want to read more just click [HERE] and read the rest from Time.com 

You can also read more on rapport building from a few of my articles:

CPR: Charisma, Professionalism & Rapport

5 Tips On Measuring Crisis & Hostage Negotiation Progress

Tips On Building Rapport

Cops Add Texting To Crisis Negotiation Arsenal

Police negotiator Andres Wells was doing all he could to keep a suspect from killing himself after a robbery and chase. But the man kept cutting phone calls short and pointing his handgun to his head.

About 10 minutes after the last hangup, Wells' cellphone chimed. It was a text from the suspect.

"Please call Amie," the message said, followed by the number of the man's girlfriend.

Wells was surprised. In three years as a negotiator with the Kalamazoo, Michigan, police, he'd always relied on taking cues from a person's tone of voice, the emotions. He'd never thought about negotiating via text.

Read more from the AP/PoliceOne.com [HERE].