ABSTRACT
The quality of staff and client relationships has been cited as a key determinant in facilitating recovery and reducing the risk of relapse (Penn et al., 2004). This is especially true for people with psychosis as wider social networks can diminish (Randolph, 1998). Good relationships are particularly important when working with individuals who present with problematic behaviours where developing a trusting relationship is often difficult and a whole team approach is needed to avoid team splitting. This is crucial if behaviours are not to be inadvertently reinforced and also to avoid overlapping or competing approaches. In Chapter 4 we detailed how a shared person level formulation could begin the process of achieving a more shared conceptualisation of the client’s distress and behaviour in general terms and placing this in the person’s life context. A frequently encountered barrier to developing a shared view and consistent approach are the often negative attributions that staff and carers make regarding people who present with what can be very challenging behaviours.
