anger management programmes

Question 1

aim

Answer 1

for clients to think about long term consequences of their behaviour

Question 2

what are anger management programmes based on the assumption of

Answer 2

that the primary cause of violent criminal acts is anger

the ability to control aggressive behaviour will impact on recidivism rates

Question 3

what type of therapy is anger management and who was it developed by

Answer 3

cognitive behavioural therapy

Novaco - 1975

Question 4

what are the three main steps in anger management

Answer 4

cognitive preparation

skill aquisition

application practice

Question 5

cognitive preparation

Answer 5

reflecting on past experiences to identify anger triggers and consequences

with a trained therapist

Question 6

skill aquisition

Answer 6

examples include - behavioural redirection, self-talk to promote calmness rather than aggression and social skills, such as conflict resolution

Question 7

application practice

Answer 7

applying the skills to a triggering setting in a controlled environment

tests whether new techniques have been internalised

Question 8

what is CALM and its aims

Answer 8

Controlling Anger and Learning to Manage it

24 two-hour sessions

reduce the frequency, intensity and duration of anger

helps participants to control, monitor and understand their emotions

each session is sequential

Question 9

what are the 6 stages of CALM

Answer 9

1. motivating to want to change
2. taught how to identify physiological changes that occur when they become angry, then provided with techniques to reduce anger
3. learning how to replace irrational and hurtful thoughts with more rational thoughts

4.learn communication skills - e.g. thought stopping (learns to stop thinking aggressive thoughts and direct them somewhere else)

5. applying skills to situations
6. identifying situations most likely to cause aggression and develop prevention methods and learn coping skills if the offender relapses to aggression.

Question 10

benefits of CALM being fully scripted

Answer 10

anyone can deliver it after a short training programme

ppts workbook is sixth-grade reading level, so it is suitable for males with poor literacy skills and limited education and scripts can be adapted easily.

Question 11

Using the acronym ‘DESSERT’, evaluate a ‘different treatment’ point.

Answer 11

P - Hormone therapy is an alternative treatment
E - It aims to reduce criminality by inhibiting the production of testosterone and may be seen as a faster acting treatment
E - This is because biological treatments start working immediately whereas anger management programmes may take up to 10 weeks to complete with a waiting list beforehand

Question 12

Using the acronym ‘DESSERT’, evaluate an ‘expense’ point.

Answer 12

P - More expensive than hormone treatment
E - The sessions are run by a trained professional and can involve group and one-to-one work
E - Therefore more expensive due to the practitioner needing to be paid and tax payer money is used

Question 13

Using the acronym ‘DESSERT’, evaluate 2 ‘supporting studies’ points.

Answer 13

P - AM causes a reduction in anger for the majority of people who take part
E - Ireland (2000) showed that 92% benefited from the treatment of the 24 two-hour sessions of CALM
E - shows that anger management reduced the frequency of anger as 92% of ppts showed improvement on at least 1 angry behaviour

P - offenders taking part voluntarily will increase the effectiveness of AM - Howells et al (2005)
E - Found that AM programmes don’t guarantee improvement unless the ppt is motivated to change as there was a positive correlation between prisoners who stated they were ‘ready to change’ and the improvements they made
E - Therefore showing that they should only be given to those who are willing to change and that when they are, they work

Question 14

Using the acronym ‘DESSERT’, evaluate 2 ‘side effects’ points.

Answer 14

P - No side effects
E - Whereas hormone treatment could lead to side effects such as drowsiness
E - If there are no side effects then this means that the treatment will be more likely to be completed with lack of harm caused and criminals will be more likely to participate

P - Can lead to domestic abuse
E - Men who were convicted of domestic violence were found to be less physically violent following an AM programme but were more verbally or psychologically abusive.
E - Therefore the programmes may highlight other ways offenders can hurt people, and it may not actually decrease anger and instead the anger is just expressed through a different form of abuse. This questions their effectiveness

Question 15

Using the acronym ‘DESSERT’, evaluate 2 ‘ethics’ points.

Answer 15

P - Poor
E - There is a lack of focus on the harm caused to the victim of the offender and it instead focuses on the triggers that causes anger
E - Therefore they may fail to understand the morality issues which could potentially lead to reoffending
P - Poor
E - Some may be forced into the programme as a condition of release
E - This means it has high levels of social control meaning the offenders rights may be compromised

Question 16

Using the acronym ‘DESSERT’, evaluate a ‘reason or mask’ point.

Answer 16

P - Anger management programmes give offenders life skills
E - The programme focuses on the trigger of aggression and new ways to react in those situations, which aims to solve the route cause of the problem. Instead of masking the issue like hormone therapy does.
E - Therefore can lead to helping people understand what makes them angry to help them avoid it and lower the risk to themselves and others, which also reduces their risk to society.

Question 17

Using the acronym ‘DESSERT’, evaluate a ‘time’ point.

Answer 17

P - Anger management programmes can take up to 10 weeks, occurring twice-weekly
E - This is slower than hormone treatment which can take effect instantly
E - However could be more effective long term as people learn life skills in AM programmes to help them in the future whereas hormone treatment is always a short term solution and if it is discontinued, the anger may return.