ANDThere are numerous definitions of what an emotion or feeling is, but in themselves, both terms have not been clearly defined. According to Greenberg, feeling can be understood as “the awareness” of the sensations produced by the affect or biological, non-conscious response to a certain stimulation. For their part, emotions are understood as experiences that involve the integration of various levels of processing. These give deep meaning to our experience, they give us information about what is significant to us, influencing the what, how and when of the decisions we make (Greenberg 2000).
The emotions that a person feels are not problematic in themselves and have a very important functional value. For example: anger, fear, sadness and guilt, among others, can be very useful for adapting a person’s behavior to a particular situation they are experiencing. But when the intensity, frequency and mode significantly affect the behavior of the person, as well as the people around them, they can become a problem for them and lead to psychological consultation (Howells 2003).
Anger, like any emotion, plays an important role in a person’s life, but there are times when it can become a real problem.
When anger is expressed in a constructive and non-hostile way, it will give us the opportunity to experience important feelings, identify problems, correct concerns and motivate effective behaviors. But, when expressed in a hostile and aggressive manner or in some other dysfunctional way, anger can lead to problems. Anger (or rage), like hostility, are two major contributors to health problems, especially cardiovascular disease.
Those who have difficulty managing anger also tend to more frequently experience anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, and alcohol problems.
Those who do not know how to manage this emotion find their work, family and friendship relationships as well as their work/student performance affected. In turn, those who have difficulties managing anger also tend to experience anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, and alcohol problems more frequently (Deffenbacher, Oetting, & DiGiuseppe, 2002).
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The differences between people and their ease of getting angry is not something new, it began to be observed by the Greeks around 400 BC, in certain people who had a much more angry temperament than others.
Several hundred years later, in 1950, scientific research began to study anger in greater depth. It was Charles Spielberger and his associates who introduced, in 1980, the theory of personality traits of anger. In his theory, anger as a state is considered an acute emotional and physiological reaction that ranges between mild irritation and intense fury.
On the other hand, anger as a trait is considered a dimension of personality that shows a chronic tendency to experience it with greater frequency, intensity and duration. That is, those people with high anger traits will tend to get angry more frequently, intensely, easily, and for longer periods than those with low anger traits (Veenstra, Bushman, & Koole, 2017).
Anger, at its finest, is a negative affective state that can include increased physiological arousal, thoughts of guilt, and an increased predisposition toward aggressive behavior (Sukhodolsky 2016). Anger is often provoked by frustration or interpersonal provocation. Its duration may range from a few minutes to hours and the range of intensity will fluctuate from mild annoyance to rage or fury.
In anger, two components can be distinguished: the first of them is the experience of anger or the internal feeling of it and, the second, the expression of anger, that is, the tendency of an individual to show anger, which can give rise to anger. unleash it, suppress it, or actively deal with it through the use of adaptive anger control skills (Spielberger 1988).
It is highly related to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, mood disorders such as anxiety disorders, Tourette syndrome and the autism spectrum.
The experience and expression of anger during childhood will change throughout development. Tantrums that include crying, stepping, pushing, hitting, and kicking are common in children ages 1-4 and range in frequency from 5 to 9 times per week with an average duration of 5-10 minutes. The intensity and number of tantrums will tend to decrease with age, although children may continue to outwardly display anger and frustration, behaviors that parents often label as tantrums. The decrease in frequency, mentioned above, is due to the fact that the child will develop skills to regulate his emotions and acquire socially appropriate ways to express his anger (Blanchard-Fields 2008).
According to the DSM V, in childhood difficulties managing anger and irritability are directly linked to oppositional defiant disorder and conduct disorder. In turn, it is highly related to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, mood disorders such as anxiety disorders, Tourette syndrome and the autism spectrum (Sukhodolsky 2016).
Psychological interventions should be aimed at helping to identify antecedents and consequences, that the child learns strategies to regulate his expression of anger, that he learns to solve problems in an adaptive way and that cognitive restructuring is favored.
Parents should be trained to start ignoring minor problem connections.
Also, it will be important to include parents within the therapeutic device, not only to promote compliance with the framework and to give us valuable information about the child’s behavioral problems, but they will also be a fundamental piece to generate modifications in the environment and patterns. of family behaviors where the child will put into practice the tools they learn in session.
These will have the role of Coaches where they will consistently reward non-aggressive responses or behaviors, the child’s effort to tolerate frustration and help them solve problems. Parents should also be trained to start ignoring minor problematic connections (Sukhodolsky, Denis G; Smith, Stephanie D; McCauley, Spencer A; Ibrahim, Karim; Piasecka, Justyna B 2016).
Already in adulthood, as in many other disorders, behind the difficulties in controlling anger, there are different beliefs and attitudes that bias the processing of information. Di Giuseppe (1995) identified some of the beliefs associated with anger and how these compete against therapeutic goals. Let’s look at some examples:
- Anger is appropriate.
- Low personal responsibility
- Blame
- Condemnation
- Self-righteousness (“I am right and my reaction alone…”)
- Belief of catharsis (“It is better to express anger than to control it”)
- Beliefs that anger works
Many times the presence of these beliefs causes the person not to genuinely seek to overcome their difficulties in managing anger and they end up going to treatment at the insistence of significant others. Anger is not necessarily problematic for the person and, as we have already seen, it is often appreciated (Howells 2003).
Behind the difficulties in controlling anger, there are different beliefs and attitudes that bias the processing of information.
Tiedens (2001) suggested that in many cases the expression of anger is perceived as the expression of strength and that its fulfillment is related to what is desired. Its use, in the short term, can be thought of as a strategic influence that the person can use to intimidate another and obtain benefits, a sign of status, strength and competence, although in the medium and long term, it may be seen as unfriendly. .
Therapeutic interventions should be aimed, at first, at overcoming the numerous barriers and difficulties, such as the presence of personality disorders. Close attention should also be paid to the low or lack of motivation for change, the patient’s personal goals, the level of awareness of social consequences, increasing coping skills and frustration management (Sukhodolsky et al., 2016). .
- Blanchard-Fields, F., & Coats, A.H. (2008). The experience of anger and sadness in everyday problems impacts age differences in emotion regulation. Developmental psychology, 44(6), 1547.
- DiGiuseppe, R. (1995). Developing the therapeutic alliance with angry clients.
- Greenberg, L.S., & Paivio, S. (2000). Working with emotions in psychotherapy: Paidós Ibérica.
- Howells, K., & Day, A. (2003). Readiness for anger management: Clinical and theoretical issues. Clinical Psychology Review, 23(2), 319-337.
- Spielberger, C. (1988). Manual for the State-Trail Anger Expression Inventory (STAXI). Odessa. FL: Psychological Assessment Resources. Inc.(PAR).
- Sukhodolsky, D.G., Smith, S.D., McCauley, S.A., Ibrahim, K., & Piasecka, J.B. (2016). Behavioral interventions for anger, irritability, and aggression in children and adolescents. Journal of child and adolescent psychopharmacology, 26(1), 58-64.
- Tiedens, L. Z. (2001). Anger and advancement versus sadness and subjugation: the effect of negative emotion expressions on social status conferral. Journal of personality and social psychology, 80(1), 86.