NEEDED: New Ways to Prevent Anger from Escalating!

Domestic Violence

Substance Abuse

Teen Distress & Development

Road Rage

Workplace Violence

Embarrassment & Idiocy

Health Issues

* #1 Driver of Domestic Violence -  

* Major driver of Substance Abuse -  

• People who use psychoactive substances have significantly elevated trait anger scores
• Elevated anger is linked to higher relapse risk.
• High baseline anger in adolescents in substance-use treatment increases relapse related to alcohol, arests for assaults).

• Aggressive driving / road rage: Meta-analyses confirm a positive relationship between anger (especially trait anger) and aggressive driving behaviors.
• Workplace and general violence: Anger and emotional dysregulation are associated with violent behavior; workplace violence incidents frequently involve prior indicators of anger or hostility (Secret Service and other reviews note high rates of prior domestic violence or concerning behaviors among workplace attackers).
• Relationships and divorce: Escalated conflict involving high negative affect (including anger) is a strong predictor of early divorce in observational research (Gottman’s work on the “Four Horsemen” and related longitudinal studies). Contempt and unregulated negative affect outperform many other factors in predicting marital dissolution.
• Health: Chronic anger is linked to elevated blood pressure, higher risk of coronary disease, and increased stroke risk in multiple observational studies.
• Broader costs: Interpersonal violence (of which anger is a frequent proximal driver) imposes large economic burdens via healthcare, criminal justice, lost productivity, and family disruption.