NCJ Number
210590
Journal
Aggression and Violent Behavior Volume: 10 Issue: 5 Dated: July-August 2005 Pages: 624-635
Date Published
July 2005
Length
12 pages
Annotation
This paper reviews current models and accounts of dysfunctional low levels of angry feelings and/or expression, applies recently developed theories of emotional regulation to these circumstances, and discusses some of the implications of these concepts for the delivery of anger-management programs for extremely violent offenders.
Abstract
Most research and theory on anger over the past decade has focused on impulsivity and excessive anger arousal; however, this contrasts with clinical observations and other accounts of cases of inhibited or unexpressed anger that is triggered into an eruption of extreme violence. Megargee (1966) attempted to explain the relationship between violent offending, anger, and the inhibition of emotion by suggesting that violent offenders be classified into two personality types: "undercontrolled aggressive" and the "chronically over-controlled." These two broad classifications, however, do not adequately describe or explain variations in anger inhibition. Blackburn has augmented Megargee's model to encompass two types of over-controlled individuals, i.e., the "conforming type" and the "inhibited type" (Blackburn, 1986, 1993). Conforming types deny anger under states of sociability and conformity; and inhibited types describe strong experiences of anger but have great difficulty expressing it; they avoid social interaction, report depressive feelings, and have a poor self-image. Other than the work of Megargee and Blackburn, there has been little empirical work on the relevance of anger inhibition and its links to extreme (murderous) violence. This paper argues that this research gap must be addressed in order to adequately conceptualize serious violence and develop effective rehabilitation programs that deal with the heterogeneous typologies of violent offenders. Such research is likely to lead to an expansion of the range of self-regulatory strategies promoted in the treatment of violent offenders. 55 references