In today’s society, it is very important for people to remain calm in the face of the dozens of stressful situations/events they experience almost every day.
The many ongoing activities of daily life that cause worry, and the economic, social or emotional difficulties these activities bring, can provoke anger.
Of course, to define anger, we first need to be able to define the concept of ‘emotion’. Emotions are important psychological components that accompany our experiences, are influenced by events and situations, and influence those experiences in turn.
Anger is a healthy, universal and natural emotional response that most often arises when a person’s needs are not met, their plans are obstructed, they are treated unfairly or their expectations are not fulfilled. The important point here is the negative way in which anger is expressed. Anger can be part of healthy communication, but it can also manifest through certain actions. Anger that a person accepts, understands and tries to express in a healthy way can be useful and lead to productivity. However, anger that cannot be controlled or is disregarded through suppression or denial has the potential to harm both the individual and those around them.
Many studies show that tendencies towards violence and anger, and the resulting aggressive acts, are generally associated with the limbic system, frontal lobe and temporal lobe. Of course, witnessing violence in childhood, experiencing violence directly, living in crowded conditions, severe poverty, socioeconomic factors that can disrupt family structure, having a psychiatric illness, ongoing stressful events, imbalances in serotonin metabolism, hormonal imbalances during the premenstrual phase and alcohol/drug use also increase the tendency towards anger.
Prolonged exposure to violence or uncontrolled anger brings many negative feelings, such as worthlessness, helplessness and inadequacy. It also brings adverse life events, such as difficulties in interpersonal communication, reduced functioning at work and divorce.
Developing the ability to express anger in a healthy way is called “anger management”. The main goal of anger management is to develop the ability to express emotions without aggression, without escalating into violence and without harming oneself or others. Although the right approach to anger management varies from person to person, factors such as the individual’s lifestyle, personality traits and comfort with using the approach should be considered when choosing a method.
Anger management techniques
Some general methods used to manage anger are as follows:
- Being able to identify and confront triggers,
- Using self-instructions. For example, these should take the form of: do not let anger take over, take a deep breath.
- Recognising emotions more clearly and being aware of them. This will allow us to communicate more healthily, as we will better understand how we feel about our expectations and unfulfilled desires.
- Knowing the ABCs of anger. This makes it easier to apply the stop, think and act model in terms of the causes of anger, behaviours and consequences.
- Strategies can be developed, such as trying to keep ourselves away from events that provoke or anger us.
If, despite all these efforts, a person is unable to make changes and their anger develops into actions such as physical violence, shouting or breaking things, they are advised to seek support from a psychologist or psychiatrist.
Clinical Psychologist Solin Çekin
