Objective: The influence of anger experience, expression, and control on aggressive behavior has been the focus of much theoretical and empirical attention. The influence of other emotions and emotional processing facets on aggression has received less consideration. This study sought to determine whether failing to attend to upsetting emotions, including anger, is associated with aggression, beyond the effects of poor anger control. Method: Participants (n = 64) were criminal offenders who were mandated to attend Community Corrections Offices across Melbourne, Australia. Participants completed measures of anger experience, expression and control, attention to emotions, past aggression, and verbal intelligence. Results: Results indicate that participants reporting difficulty attending to their emotions had more extensive histories of aggression than those who did not report such difficulties. This relationship remained significant even after controlling for trait anger and the ability to control the outward expression of anger. Conclusions: These findings are discussed in the context of current approaches to violent offender treatment. In particular, it is recommended that intervention programs should seek to emphasize the importance of controlling aggressive behavior in the face of anger, while attending to (rather than avoiding or suppressing) the anger experience itself.
This study tests whether specific dimensions of emotion dysregulation predict maladaptive anger expression among offenders from Italy and Australia. In particular, it examines the unique associations among emotion dysregulation dimensions and different aspects of anger expression and control, in both inmates and offenders on parole. Multiple regression analyses reveal that difficulties controlling impulsive behaviour when distressed are related to state anger, trait anger, and chronic anger expression. On the other hand, alexithymia predicts the maladaptive expression of anger inwardly directed. Finally, lack of emotional awareness and limited access to emotion regulation (ER) strategies are negatively related to anger control, suggesting that they may represent useful treatment targets. Interestingly, incarcerated offenders reported significantly higher levels of state anger and lower levels of anger control out (i.e. seeking support from others) than offenders living on parole in the community, highlighting the importance of contextual influences in the emotional life of offenders
Limit-setting and de-escalation are commonly used nursing interventions that are critical to the effective maintenance of the therapeutic milieu and the prevention and management of aggression in forensic mental health units. However, despite their purported importance, the techniques used in these interventions are rarely described. Further, these techniques are seldom based on empirical research or derived from a theory or model of aggression or interpersonal behavior. The purpose of this review is to examine the extant literature on limit-setting and de-escalation and consider how these activities could be enhanced. In concluding, this review emphasizes the potential benefits of drawing upon (1) a model of aggressive behavior and (2) a theory and literature examining interpersonal behavior, to enhance limit-setting and de-escalation skills.
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