Anger Management Flashcards
Explain Ireland’s (2004) anger management evaluation (Ao3 - Anger Management)
Ireland compared a group taking the NAMP for 12 sessions, with a non-treatment control group.
They did an interview, a questionnaire and a behavioural checklist with each offender after the course.
92% improved on at least one measure, 48% improved on the checklist and the self-report.
There were no improvements in the control group.
Explain why anger management may be better than TE systems (Ao3 - Anger Management) ++
It tries to actually tackle the cause of offending (cognitions) whereas TE only deals with surface behaviour.
Anger management is more likely to lead to a permanent chance of prison.
Explain the Keen (2000) study into anger management and young offenders (Ao3 - Anger Management) ++
Keen studied young offender ages 17-21 who took part in the National Anger Management Package (NAMP). This comprises of 8x2 hour sessions.
Despite a few issues, it was generally successful and offenders reported increased awareness of their anger issues and better self-control.
Explain Blackburn’s criticism about anger management and recidivism (Ao3 - Anger management) ++
Blackburn said that whilst anger management works in the short term, there is very little evidence that it affects recidivism rates in the long term.
This may be because the ‘role play’ element does not reflect a real life situation eg. in the pub on a Saturday night.
Explain why anger management systems are expensive (Ao3 - anger management) ++
They require highly trained professionals, working with offenders over a long period of time, which the prison may not be able to afford.
Should offenders be apathetic or uncooperative and drop out it would be a waste of money.
Explain Howell’s (2005) investigation with Australian offenders using anger management (Ao3 - Anger Management)
Howell investigated an anger management programme with Australian offenders and found little difference compared to a control group with no treatment.
However they did find that it worked best for offenders who had high levels of anger and those who were motivated to change.
