anger management

• Novaco (1975)

  suggests that cognitive factors trigger the emotional arousal which generally leads to aggressive acts. his argument is that, in some people, anger is often quick to surface especially in situations that are perceived to be anxiety-inducing or threatening
• cognitive behaviour treatment

  anger management programmes are a form of cognitive behaviour therapy, the individual is taught how to recognise when they are losing control and then encouraged to develop techniques which bring out conflict-resolution without the need for violence
• stage 1 - cognitive preparation

  requires offender to reflect on past experience and consider the typical pattern for their anger. the offender learns to identify these aggressive situations and if the way in which the offender interprets the event is irrational
• stage 2 - skill acquisition

  offenders are introduced to a range of techniques and skills to help them deal with anger-provoking situations more effectively. the techniques can be cognitive e.g. positive self-talk, behavioural e.g. better communication or physiological e.g. meditation.
• stage 3 - application practice

  offenders are given to opportunity to practise their skills in a carefully monitored environment. e.g. role play is likely to involve the offender and therapist re-enacting past angry situations. this scenario needs to feel real for the offender. if successful the situation would be met with positive reinforcement from the therapist.
• real life example

  • Keen at al studied the progress made with young offenders who took part in an anger management programme
  • the national anger management package was developed by the England and Wales prison service
  • the course requires 8 2 hour sessions, the first 7 over a 3 week period and then the last after a month
  • although there was issues e.g. offenders not taking it seriously at first, the final outcome was positive with reports of increased awareness of their anger difficulties
• A03- eclectic approach

  • includes cognitive preparation in order to identify the precursors to anger in phase 1
  • it applies a behavioural perspective when developing techniques of self-management in phase 2
  • a social approach is adopted in phase 3 when offenders are required to demonstrate what they have learnt during role play
  • multidisciplinary approach acknowledges that offending is a complex social and psychological activity
• A03 - comparison with behaviour modification

  • anger management tries to tackle one of the causes of offending and attempts to address the thought process that underlies it
  • experience of treatment programmes may give offenders new insight into the cause of their criminality and enable to discover managing themselves outside prison
  • anger management is more likely to lead to a permanent change and lower rates of recidivism
• A03 - limited long-term effectiveness

  • Ronald Blackburn says while anger management has a good effect on offenders in the short term, there is little evidence that it reduces recidivism in the long term
  • this may be because application of treatment still relies on role play which might no reflect all possible triggers in real-life situations