Describe a situation where you had to de‑escalate a rapidly intensifying dispute in a high‑stress, high‑risk environment. What specific steps did you take in the first 5–10 minutes, and what was the eventual outcome?

Question

VirtualInterview.AI · Accepted Answer

While supervising an evening shift at a transitional housing facility, two residents got into a shouting match in the kitchen over stolen food. One had a history of aggression, and we had sharp utensils out, so the risk level jumped quickly.

In the first minute, I positioned myself between them at an angle, kept my hands visible, and calmly directed one resident by name to step back with me into the hallway. I lowered my voice and slowed my speech, which usually brings the volume down. Within five minutes, I’d removed knives from reach, called another staff member to stay with the second resident, and set a clear boundary: yelling and threats had to stop before we kept talking.

After 15 minutes of separate debriefs, we agreed on labeling shelves and a simple reporting process. For the next 60 days, kitchen incident reports dropped from weekly to zero.

Sample Answer

Keywords