Staff perspectives of precipitants to aggressive behavior of adolescents in residential treatment facilities

Face-to-face, semistructured interviews with 18 staff in a public psychiatric adolescent residential treatment facility were conducted to obtain an inductive approach to their understanding of what leads to aggressive behavior among adolescents. Staff's views of the precipitants of aggressive behavior centered on three themes: understanding of the adolescent, views of interactions within the milieu, and perspective of the service system policies and procedures. Important service system factors included the culture and climate of professional development, the professional practice standards, and the available resources and technologies. A key message was the need for consistent training and awareness of philosophical differences in staff's approaches.