1. Two groups of individuals in distress were investigated. The first comprised 121 (out of a possible total of 128) Samaritan clients who made at least two contacts with the organization within a two-week period for a related problem. They were regarded as distressed individuals making persistent and rational use of a service designed to help them. By contrast, the second group comprised 93 selected first-ever admissions (out of a possible total of 97) to the Regional Poisoning Treatment Centre in Edinburgh whose crisis behaviour was considered ill-organized and less rational.