THE ULTIMATE STRESS -- “SPONTANEOUS INCOMPETENCY”


Spontaneous Incompetency The FACTS term, SI (Spontaneous Incompetency) refers to a dramatic behavior that accompanies a reaction to a stressor. Can you recall how you reacted during a surprise birthday party? That sudden shock and inability to do much of anything when everyone screamed “Surprise!!” is a basic example of SI. It’s not necessarily doing the wrong thing during an emergency, it’s doing nothing! ...Inaction. You have undoubtedly heard terms that refer to similar reactions; how about “frozen in your tracks” or “scared stiff”?


When faced with the occurrence of being frozen in your tracks, whether you remember or not, you were probably paralyzed by the moment (if at all), and holding your breath. In other words, you were suffering SI.


The time it takes your body to kick-in and regain some level of control depends on each individual’s level of emergency response-ability. The amount of training you receive goes hand in hand with your ability to combat SI. Increased training equals decreased SI. The time lag can range from mere moments, to 30 seconds to a minute or more, depending on the situation. This may be one explanation of why as high as 75-85% of soldiers “freeze”, unable to fire their weapons, when first confronted with the stressor of battle. Recognizing this potentially damaging and/or deadly behavior is the first step in correcting it.


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