A crisis (plural: crises; adjective: critical) is an event or time that causes a situation that is not safe and is hard to control. It affects one person, a group of people, or everyone in society. Crises are bad changes in people's lives or the environment, especially when they happen suddenly with little or no warning. In a more general way, a crisis is a time when something serious needs to be handled quickly.

Etymology

The English word "crisis" comes from the Latin language, which was borrowed from the Greek word krisis, meaning "discrimination, decision, or crisis." The noun crisis is formed from the Greek verb krinō, which means "to distinguish, choose, or decide."

In English, the word "crisis" was first used in medicine to describe a time during a disease when a change shows whether a patient will recover or die. This is called a turning point. It was also used to describe a major change in the development of a disease. By the mid-17th century, the word took on a different meaning, describing a "very important or decisive stage in the progress of anything," especially a time of uncertainty or difficulty. This use does not always mean a decision must happen.

Definition

A crisis is connected to psychological stress and often describes a difficult or dangerous situation. In general, a crisis happens when a "complex system," such as a family, economy, or society, is not working well. The system still functions, but it is not working properly. An immediate decision is needed to stop the system from getting worse, but the reasons for the problems are not clearly understood. These reasons may be too many or unknown, making it hard to make a clear, informed choice to fix the situation. Simple systems, like a single machine, do not experience crises. Crises can be about moral values, the economy, or politics, but not about something like a car engine.

A crisis has certain features. Seeger, Sellnow, and Ulmer describe these features as events or series of events that are unexpected, unusual, and create high levels of uncertainty. These events also threaten important goals of an organization. The first three features are:
1. The event is unexpected (it happens suddenly).
2. It creates uncertainty (people are unsure what will happen next).
3. It is seen as a threat to important goals (it risks something valuable).

Most crises are not natural events like volcanic eruptions or tsunamis, which are hard to predict. Instead, most crises are caused by people. This means that the "unexpected" nature of a crisis often happens because people fail to notice early signs of a problem. Some people may not recognize a crisis because of emotional responses like denial, which help protect their feelings.

Another reason people may not notice the start of a crisis is when they believe they are acting for good reasons, but their actions are not helpful. For example, someone might think they are helping the environment by doing an activity that has no real effect on climate change. Experts called Mitroff and Silvers explain these mistakes as Type 3 (inadvertent) and Type 4 (deliberate) errors.

When people fail to understand the results of their actions, it can lead to a crisis.

From this perspective, it is important to recognize that not understanding the real causes of problems can lead to repeated negative consequences later. In the case of governments, Michael Brecher, using studies from the International Crisis Behavior project, suggests that a crisis can be defined as a situation where leaders believe:
1. There is a threat to important values.
2. There is a high chance of military conflict.
3. There is a limited time to respond to the threat.

It is often said in Western motivational speeches that the Chinese word for "crisis" combines two characters meaning "danger" and "opportunity." However, this is not true according to linguists.

Economic

An economic crisis is a sudden change that leads to a recession. Examples include the 1994 economic crisis in Mexico, the Argentine economic crisis from 1999 to 2002, the South American economic crisis in 2002, and the economic crisis in Cameroon. Crisis theory is an important part of Karl Marx's analysis of capitalism. A financial crisis can involve problems in banks or issues with a country's currency.

Environmental

Environmental crises include the following:

An environmental disaster is a problem caused by human actions. It should not be confused with natural disasters (explained below). These events happen when human changes to the environment lead to big or lasting effects. They can cause harm to animals (including humans) and plants, or greatly disrupt human life, sometimes forcing people to move.

A natural disaster happens when a natural hazard, such as a volcano, earthquake, or landslide, becomes active and affects human activities. People are often harmed when they are not prepared or lack proper emergency plans. The damage depends on how well a community can handle the disaster, which is called resilience. This idea is shown in the statement: "Disasters happen when hazards meet vulnerability." For example, a strong earthquake in an empty area is not a disaster because no people are harmed.

For more information about natural disasters, see lists of disasters or lists of the deadliest natural disasters.

An endangered species is a group of living things that may disappear because there are very few of them or because their environment or predators change. Usually, this refers to a species, but it can also apply to other important groups. In 2008, the World Conservation Union (IUCN) found that 38% of the 44,837 species studied were at risk of becoming extinct.

International

If you want to learn more about problems in the field of international relations, look up information about crisis management and international crisis. In this area, a crisis can be described as a situation where people feel something dangerous is happening, there is a lot of worry, people expect possible violence, and they believe that any actions taken will have big effects that last a long time (Lebow, 7–10).

Personal

A personal crisis happens when someone can no longer handle a difficult situation. This usually follows unusual events that create very high stress and tension. These events may include things like extreme weather, sudden job or money problems, medical emergencies, long-term illness, or family conflicts. A crisis changes the normal daily life of a person and those close to them, such as losing a job, facing serious financial trouble, or dealing with addiction. During a crisis, a person may feel mentally unbalanced, struggling to manage their thoughts and feelings. To cope, they might use methods like crying, avoiding others, making quick decisions, acting out, or delaying actions.

Sometimes, people find it hard to adjust during a crisis. Because the situation is outside their usual experience, they may have trouble controlling their emotions. This can lead to problems like thinking about suicide, using drugs, breaking laws, or avoiding help. A person’s social support system—such as family, friends, coworkers, or doctors—can help them through a crisis. It is important that the people in this support system are trusted. However, these same support systems can also cause about two-thirds of mental health crises, such as problems in marriage, feeling abandoned, or family disagreements.

To help someone in a crisis, it is important to recognize signs that they are struggling. These signs include thinking in unclear or limited ways, having trouble focusing, acting without clear reasons, solving problems in a messy way, avoiding communication, mixing up big and small issues, or changing how they interact with others. A crisis can be managed by using methods like getting enough sleep, accepting difficult situations, exercising, meditating, and thinking clearly. Crisis intervention aims to help a person return to their usual level of functioning or even improve it with the help of a support group. As Judith Swan noted, a person’s ability to stay emotionally balanced is closely connected to how much they trust their support system. The steps of crisis intervention include: understanding the person’s behavior, deciding what kind of help they need, and taking action based on their abilities to regain balance.

In situations like natural disasters or other crises linked to climate change, people often feel strong emotions. Sharing these feelings as a group can help build resilience and a sense of community. When people receive proper support for their emotions, these feelings can help them adapt better.

The Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario suggests the ABC model for helping people in crisis. Another helpful method is active listening, which means trying to see a situation from another person’s point of view and letting them know you understand. This builds trust by showing empathy, understanding, and fairness without judgment. It is important to pay attention to both spoken and unspoken reactions to identify the person’s emotions. Techniques like restating what they say, using silence, and reflecting their feelings can help keep the conversation going. The goal of active listening is to encourage the person to talk about their situation.

In chaos theory

When a setting in a chaotic system is changed, the pattern that forms in the system touches a path that does not stay the same inside the area where the system's behavior is influenced. This causes the pattern to suddenly grow larger. This event is called an interior crisis in a chaotic system.