considering. This strategy invites to a proactive and creative attitude
regarding the state of facts.
g. Omission : verifying the way the case is presented for the others is
useful in identifying the elements that can contribute to its
completeness.- Provoking the handiest causal explanation. It is recommended to
consecutively explore the reasons leading to the critical incident, step by step,
with the help of questions such as ”Why? In what way is this important?”.
The social construct of the opinion is subservient to the perspective change,
as our convictions or interests dictate. - Dilemma of identification. Once we have admitted to what puts us in
professional difficulty, we can take the necessary measures to better the
situation. Moreover, it is important to become aware whether there is a
personal limit or one inherent to the situation. - Personal theory. The ensemble of values and judgements formed in time
through education and experience – here called “personal theory” –
influences the way we perceive and act when facing critical incidents. This is
why the competence of a practitioner must not only be assessed by
involvement in isolated case, but especially by his/her consistent conduct in
extreme situations, self-command, and work style with the client.
Target population
At first sight, the critical incident technique is mainly addressed to a reflexive
practitioner, who identifies the incident in his/her activity (teaching, counselling, etc.) and
decides to present the characteristic elements of the case in the professional community,
usually in periodic publications or conferences.
On a closer analysis, making public the critical incidents has formative value both for the
person involved and for the peers in the same or related specialties. The benefits of taking
action in revealing the critical incidents can be:
- sharing the dilemma to attract constructive comments and observations from
peers and thus enrich the approach; - perpetuation of a critical incident challenge in the view of stirring correct
solutions; - signalling an extreme situation for which there are no verified solutions;