Crisis Interventions in Different Countries: Cultural and Contextual Variations

The impact of crisis incidents on children is generally insidious and destructive, regardless of event, location, or culture. As one of the most vulnerable groups in society, children are heavily impacted by crisis events (whether natural or man-made) due to their limited independence and developmental needs. When a crisis occurs within the school setting, the effect is multiplied due to the disruption of an essential component of a child’s life. School environments are the places where children learn how to problem solve, develop social skills, and move toward independence. Disruption of the school environment by a sudden, traumatic event can have lasting consequences and distract children from the essential activities of development. The list of school crisis events is not necessarily useful to document, but it is worth noting that school crises have occurred throughout the past 100 years, and the incidents are evidence of the need for an ongoing cycle of preparation, prevention, intervention, and evaluation/reflection. Efforts to respond to crises situations across national boundaries have presented challenges related to the cultural and contextual appropriateness of available interventions that were developed for different populations. The need for culture- and context-specific approaches has been raised. This chapter addresses the issue by providing examples of crisis responses that are emerging in various countries to specifically address cultural and contextual variations. Finally, the chapter proposes some potential future directions for crisis intervention.