Essay

Currently, anger management programs have gained popularity and are easily accessible within many clinical settings. Most applications, however, have been developed on the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) method (Wilson et al., 2013). Various techniques including relaxation techniques and cognitive reframing are taught in CBT to help in the improvement of anger management through a regulated exposure to provocation and enhanced cognitive skills for self-control and distress tolerance. Other anger management interventions include the use of a mobile application, counseling among and therapeutic alliances among others. The current paper, therefore, aims at evaluating the impact of the various anger management interventions anger dysregulation in adults. In addition to that, the article also aimed at determining the effectiveness of the interventions in the improvement of self-regulation in different people.

Studies indicate that different people encountering different challenging situations are prone to having problems in controlling their anger. For instance, adults living in the community with learning disabilities have been reported to have anger problems. According to Borsay (2013), out of every four adults living in the city with learning disabilities, at least one find it difficult to control their anger. Previous studies on CBT approaches reported equivocal findings (Whitaker cited in Borsay, 2013). However, recent studies suggest that the use of CBT in anger management has been considered quite useful in anger management.

Zarshenas, Beneshi, Sharif, and Sarani (2017) carried out quasi-experiment research that aimed at investigating the use of methods based on CBT on anger management in substance abuse patients. The study involved evaluating the aggression level of 36 patients who were then enrolled in either group therapy sessions, which included 12 educational sessions, or to a cognitive intervention that involved learning communication and relaxation skills. The findings of the study revealed that after the response, there was a significant difference between the two groups with regards to aggression levels. According to the study findings, anger management education based on cognitive interventions can efficiently reduce the aggression level and promote a healthy quality of life in patients with substance abuse (Zarshenas et al., 2017). According to the findings, there is a close relationship between aggression and substance abuse, indicating that anger issues are a significant challenge in quitting an addiction.

Anger is a universal emotion in military members and veterans. In addition to post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD), veterans have reported experiencing high anger levels which ultimately affect their lives (Mackintosh Morland, Frue, Greene & Rosen, 2014). In their research, Mackintosh et al. (2014) investigated the potential anger reduction mechanisms, in using anger regulation skills and therapeutic alliance after anger management treatment in veterans with PTSD. The data included in the study was taken from a published randomized control study which included 109 veterans suffering from PTSD. According to the findings of the study, after the treatment, veterans exhibited calming skills which played a significant role in reducing anger symptoms. However, the cognitive coping and behavioral skills did not seem to predict anger reductions in the veterans. The findings also showed that therapeutic alliance had an indirect in the outcomes by arousing a calming ability in the veterans, which suggested that a reduction in anger symptoms may be because of developing talent in calming physiological arousing.

Another study on the use of the mobile application in anger management was conducted by Mackintosh et al. (2017) which aimed at doing a randomized controlled trial to compare the method of anger management treatment (AMT) and the use of AMT with RELAX in veterans. A total of 58 participants took part the study which was made of twelve sessions. The participants were enrolled in either of the two groups, i.e., AMT alone, or in AMT combined with RELAX also which collected data on the app use. The data were collected on anger, satisfaction, depression, PTSD, and on interpersonal functioning, at the beginning of the study, at 3-months and finally at 6-months. The study findings revealed that out of all the participants, 13.8% dropped out of the study. Both groups of the remaining participants showed a reduction in PTSD, anger severity post-treatment. However, both groups did not report any significant changes in depression and interpersonal functioning. On the other hand, the participants in the AMT and RELAX group said to spend significantly less amount of time on homework after the treatment. The study concluded that incorporating RELAX with the AMT was beneficial in reducing anger management as well as a resourceful use of time between sessions. Nevertheless, the study used a small sample size which cannot be used in making generalizations. Also, only veterans were included in the research, and therefore the findings do not provide the possible outcomes of the RELAX system to other people.

During pregnancy, women are exposed to physical and physiological changes (including hormonal changes) that may sometimes cause stress, depression, and irritability. Moridi, Modarres, Mogaddam, and Foroushani (2016) carried out a quasi-experimental study which aimed at investigating the impact of anger management counseling and stress control on the mental health of pregnant women. A total of 125 expectant women were included in the study, enrolled in either the intervention group or in the control group. The educative counseling intervention involved four face-to-face meetings, including a booklet and a reminder SMS for sixty minutes every week. A pre-test data collection was done, and a post-test data collection was conducted after four weeks of completion, and the data was collected using a standard mental health assessment questionnaire. After analysis, the findings revealed that there were significant differences in the anxiety, physical dimensions, depression and social function in the intervention group. Anger management counseling proved useful in prenatal care, and the study showed that using anger management education is essential in improving the mental health of expectant mothers which can, in turn, improve the health of the family.

Wilson et al. (2013) on the other hand conducted an evaluation of anger management groups in a high-security hospital, involving 86 patients taking 20 sessions of anger management interventions. The results on the self-reported anger outcomes showed that there was a reduction in anger feelings and positive changes in the use of aggression reactions were also recorded. When comparing those who completed the sessions to those who did not end the meetings, it was noted that there was a significant reduction in the incidences of physical aggression in the former than in the latter. Also, a comparison of the treated men and those on the waiting list showed a general improvement in the treated men.

As mentioned earlier, uncontrolled anger can affect the lives of individuals. Irrespective of a person’s job, family, friends or environment, human beings are prone to anger, which can be detrimental if left unchecked. The current paper discussed various anger management approaches and their impacts on different people. From the findings, different anger management approaches affect different people in different situations. For instance, CBT is effective in substance abuse anger management patients (Zarshenas et al., 2017) while it is not very efficient in veterans with PTSD (Mackintosh et al., 2014). On the other hand, anger management counseling is effective in expectant mothers while calming mobile applications are helpful in reducing anger symptoms in veterans. With the potential outcome of anger, it is therefore essential to have a complete understanding of the causal and maintenance factors of the anger issue to know the best intervention to use for a particular patient.

Resources:

1- Shahsavarani, Amir Mohammad, et al. “Anger Management and Control in Social and Behavioral Sciences: A Systematic Review of Literature on Biopyschosocial Model.” International Journal of Medical Reviews, International Journal of Medical Reviews, 11 Feb. 2016, journals.bmsu.ac.ir/ijmr/index.php/ijmr/article/view/149.