The Escalation Cycle: 7 Stages and How to Interrupt Them at Work

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Tension at work often builds gradually. Even strong teams see moments when frustration builds over a tight deadline or a tense handoff. The escalation cycle describes that build-up like a staircase, one step at a time.

Conflict is a normal part of working with other people. This guide covers each stage, a model for coworker conflict, and how to respond.

What Is the Escalation Cycle?

The escalation cycle is a recognizable sequence of seven stages that describes how frustration builds to a peak and then settles. The stages are calm, trigger, agitation, acceleration, peak, de-escalation, and recovery. Each stage has recognizable behaviors, so you can often notice tension and respond before it reaches the peak.

In schools, the IRIS Center at Vanderbilt University explains that students who consistently show challenging behavior “typically progress through” a seven-phase acting-out cycle. IRIS adapted it from Geoff Colvin (2004). IRIS calls the model the acting-out cycle, and this guide uses “escalation cycle” and “behavior escalation cycle” interchangeably.

Using the cycle with adults at work is an application of the model rather than a research finding. Still, the same sequence offers a useful way to think about how tension builds between coworkers or with customers. It gives managers a shared language for what they’re seeing and when to step in.

Escalation can reflect needs, interests, and emotions beneath the surface, especially when a core need feels threatened. A framework of six core psychological needs offers one way to think about what may drive a reaction.

The 7 Stages of the Escalation Cycle

The table summarizes each stage of the escalation cycle and where to focus.

Stage 1: Calm

The calm phase is the baseline. People are stable, cooperative, and communicative, and their body language looks relaxed. They can take feedback, ask questions, and work through disagreements.

This stage is the best window for prevention. Team agreements, clear priorities, clarity on who has final say, and short check-ins can give people a shared reference point and show each person’s baseline.

Stage 2: Trigger

A trigger is the event that starts the climb. Examples include conflicting instructions, a perceived slight, an unmet need, a sudden deadline, fatigue, or hunger.

Name the feeling, ask an open question such as “What’s making this harder today?”, and clarify next steps. For tension between coworkers, see this guide to handling interpersonal conflict at work.

Stage 3: Agitation

Agitation is when stress starts to show. You might notice a clenched jaw, terse replies, sarcasm, or withdrawal. A usually talkative teammate may go quiet in meetings.

In practice, the person is often still able to listen, so this can be one of the best moments to respond. Listen actively, simplify instructions, move to a quieter space, and offer a short pause. Ordering, warning, and lecturing can push agitation higher, and they’re among the common communication roadblocks.

Stage 4: Acceleration

Acceleration is when tension becomes visible to everyone. Signs include a raised voice, arguing, verbal aggression, and pacing.

Your goal is to slow the climb without becoming part of it. Stay steady, keep your own voice low, and focus on the next few minutes rather than the whole disagreement.

Avoid power struggles and set a calm boundary, such as “I want to hear you, and I need us to speak quietly.” Offer two choices, or bring in a neutral colleague. These core de-escalation skills are easier to use after rehearsal during calm periods.

Stage 5: Peak

The peak phase is the most intense point of the cycle. Reasoning is least available here, and the person may not be able to process explanations or requests.

In Nature Reviews Neuroscience, Arnsten (2009) explains how stress impairs prefrontal function, even with “quite mild acute uncontrollable stress,” based on human and animal lab studies. That research studied acute stress in general, not workplace conflict.

Safety comes first at the peak. Keep distance and a clear exit, use short sentences, avoid arguing or physical intervention, and get trained help.

CISA de-escalation guidance says de-escalation “should be attempted by trained and proficient personnel, if safe to do so.” The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency wrote that guide for potentially violent situations. If there is an immediate threat of violence or serious harm, follow your organization’s emergency procedures; de-escalation supports safety but never replaces safety protocols.

Stage 6: De-escalation

In the de-escalation phase, intensity drops. The person may seem tired, subdued, or confused. This part of the escalation cycle is fragile, and rushing the conversation may restart the climb.

Keep the environment calm, keep demands minimal, avoid blame, and allow time. Moving to problem-solving too quickly can feel like pressure. The psychology of de-escalation explains why calm, empathetic communication can lower tension.

Stage 7: Recovery

Recovery is the gradual return toward baseline. The person may be subdued at first and may prefer to avoid discussing the incident.

Once they’re steadier, a calm, private conversation is more likely to be useful. Return to routine, and document facts according to policy without labels.

How Conflict Escalates Between People: Glasl’s Nine Stages

Conflict between people often escalates on a longer timeline. The seven-stage escalation cycle tracks one person’s arousal, often over minutes or hours. A conflict escalation cycle between coworkers can build over weeks or months.

Thomas Jordan’s summary of Glasl’s nine-stage escalation model, hosted by the University of Houston Law Center, says Stage 4 conflict turns on “victory or defeat.” Jordan calls the model a diagnostic tool for conflict facilitators.

Practitioners often read the nine stages in three broad bands. In early stages, people still look for a shared solution, and in middle stages winning can take over. In late stages, people may accept losses to see the other person lose.

The workplace examples below are illustrations rather than part of Jordan’s summary.

1. Hardening begins as a manager keeps pushing tighter deadlines and a team lead’s frustration settles into a rigid position.
2. Debates and Polemics turn meetings into contests where people argue to score points instead of to understand.
3. Actions, Not Words means one person makes a unilateral decision instead of talking it through.
4. Images and Coalitions form as gossip spreads and each person recruits allies.
5. Loss of Face occurs when someone is blamed publicly in a meeting or group email.
6. Strategies of Threats bring ultimatums, such as “I’ll take this up the chain.”
7. Limited Destructive Blows involve people withholding information so the other person struggles.
8. Fragmentation of the Enemy happens when one person targets the other’s allies, support, or standing.
9. Together into the Abyss brings resignations, formal complaints, or lawsuits, regardless of personal cost.

Interest-based conversations can fit best in the early and middle stages, when people may still be able to talk through underlying needs.

Use the Glasl model as a diagnostic tool rather than a prediction. Conflicts may not pass through every stage in order. Placing a conflict on the map can help you choose a response that fits where it is now.

How to Spot Escalation Early at Work

Early warning signs of escalation are usually small. Even strong teams can miss a sigh after a meeting, a shift in tone, or a usually talkative teammate going quiet. These cues are easier to notice when you know each person’s baseline.

Physical cues across the escalation cycle might include a clenched jaw or restless movement. Verbal cues can sound like clipped answers or a sharper tone, while interactional cues show up as missed check-ins or side conversations.

Self-regulation means noticing and managing your own stress response, and co-regulation means using your calm voice and pace to help someone else settle. Once you see the cycle, you begin to recognize it in yourself.

In SHRM Civility Index findings, 44% of workers who experienced or witnessed incivility felt their manager could have done more to prevent it. That figure reflects those who agreed or strongly agreed in SHRM’s self-reported survey of 1,478 U.S. workers in Q3 2025.

Incivility and conflict are different things. Still, managers can play a role in noticing both.

Supporting Your Team After an Escalation

Follow-up after the escalation cycle runs its course can help a team steady itself. Restate team norms consistently. Look for recurring triggers such as unclear priorities, workload spikes, or conflicting instructions.

A blame-free review can focus on what each person needed, using the empathy techniques below.

• Active listening means giving full attention, then inviting more with “Tell me more.”
• Validating feelings acknowledges an emotion without judgment, as in “This sounds frustrating.”
• Reflective listening restates what you heard, as in “So the deadline change left you without time to prepare.”
• Open body language, such as a relaxed posture, pairs well with “I’m listening, so take your time.”

Over time, these conversations can bring recurring needs to light, such as clearer roles or more predictable workloads. Building skills during calm periods can give the team practice before the next trigger.

Frequently Asked Questions

Building Calmer Responses to Conflict

Every stage of the escalation cycle offers a chance to respond. The earlier you notice tension, the more options you and your team have. Conflict is a normal part of working together, and de-escalation training for teams from Pollack Peacebuilding Systems can help people practice responding at every stage.

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