Librarians are increasingly under attack. With the rise of book bans, political polarization and normalization of online attacks, librarians are often caught in the crosshairs. How can you protect yourself and your library colleagues and defuse the growing number of angry patrons?
This webinar will discuss policies and practices to help prevent and/or mitigate angry behavior. It will also discuss Verbal Judo, a de-escalation technique that can be used in stressful situations. Patrons from teens to adults will be discussed, as well as some responses to hostile behavior. You’ll also learn more about when to involve, or not involve, authorities. While the root cause of much of this anger can’t be easily resolved, there are mitigation strategies that can help.
This webinar will discuss:
- Finding outlets for yourself
- Verbal Judo and de-escalation techniques
- Steps to ask a patron to leave
- Dealing with unsafe adolescent behaviors
- Suggestions of policies and staff practices
Defusing Encounters With Angry Patrons at your Library
Carrie Rogers-Whitehead is the founder of Digital Respons-Ability, a mission-based company that teaches digital citizenship to tens of thousands of parents, students, and educators across the world. Digital Respons-Ability’s products and services have been recognized internationally and they recently won a 2023 CODiES for “Best Digital Citizenship Solution.” Before her work with Digital Respons-Ability, Carrie worked for a decade in public libraries and continues to partner and work with libraries. Carrie regularly writes, speaks and researches on digital citizenship, parenting, technology, libraries and education. She is the award-winning author of seven books, including most recently: Deepening Digital Citizenship: A Guide to Systemwide Policy and Practice. Carrie lives with her family in Utah with a constant pile of books on her nightstand.
