Dealing With Offending Behaviour: Anger Managment Flashcards
What does Novaco suggest cognitive factors trigger?
Emotional arousal which precedes aggressive acts.
What does Novaco argue anger is in some people?
Quick to surface especially in situations perceived to be anxiety-inducing/ threatening.
What is becoming angry in behaviourist terms?
Reinforced by feelings of control in a situation.
What is anger management a form of? And what does it teach?
A form of CBT that teaches people to recognise cognitive factors that trigger anger and LOC.
What does anger management encourage ?
Techniques which bing conflict resolution without the need for violence.
What are the three stages of anger management called?
- Cognitive preparation
- Skills acquisition
- Application practice
What is cognitive preparation?
An offender reflects on past experiences and considers the typical patterns of anger.
If the offender interprets anger in an irrational way the therapist has to make this clear.
Re-defining a situation as non-threatening is an attempt to break the offenders automatic response.
What is skills acquisition?
Offenders are introduced to techniques and skills which hep deal with anger-provoking situations rationally and effectively.
Techniques can include:
- Cognitive - positive self talk encouraging calmness.
- Behavioural - assertiveness training to communicate effectively which becomes an automatic response practiced regularly.
- Physiological - deals with physical reactions using relaxation/ meditation. Aim = control emotions rather than letting them control you.
What did Keen et al study?
Progress made with young offenders 17-21in an anger management programme.
What did the anger management course used in Keen et als study compromise of?
8 two-hour sessions.
First 7 over a 3 week period and the last session one month after.
What did offenders report after the anger management programme?
Offenders reported increased awareness of anger management difficulties and increased capacity to exercise self-control.
Evaluation: Benefits outlast those of behaviour modification
Alternative treatments only deal with surface behaviour however using anger management may give offenders insight into the cause of criminality and allow self-discovery in managing themselves outside of prison which suggests anger management is more likely than behaviour modification to lead to permanent behavioural change.
Evaluation: follow up studies dont support the assumption that anger management lasts longer
Blackburn points out that anger management may have noticeable effects on the offenders conduct in the short term however this may be because the application phase of treatment still relies on role play which might not reflect all possible triggers suggesting in the end anger management may not reduce reoffending.
Evaluation: success may depend on individual differences
Howells et al investigated Australian offenders and found participation in anger management had little overall effect when compared to a control group who received no treatment however this wasn’t true of all offenders which suggests anger management may only benefit offenders who first a certain profile.
Evaluation: an expensive option
It is expensive to run programmes as they require services of highly-trained specialists who are used to dealing with violent offenders and many prisons don’t have the funding to run these programmes which suggests that effective anger management programmes probably wont work in most prisons.
