Anger

Anger

We feel angry when we perceive that something or someone is on the path to our desired result or that things are not going how we think they should.

More about this emotion

Anger can mask more deeply-rooted negative emotions like regret or shame or be part of complex processes like grief.

Some researchers view anger as an emotional state and distinguish it from hostility, which they view as a personality trait, or aggression, which they consider to be the behavioral expression of the first two (see work by Spielberger, Krasne, and Solomon.)

In addition, Spielberger explains that anger can vary in intensity “from mild irritation or annoyance to fury and rage.”

According to Brené Brown, anger can be a powerful motivator, for instance driving causes like social justice, but if not controlled, it can also be emotionally draining.

Sources and other readings

The Experience, Expression, and Control of Anger

C. D. Spielberger et al.

The Experience, Expression, and Control of Anger

C. D. Spielberger et al.

Why anger is overrated

BBC Ideas

Why anger is overrated

BBC Ideas

Atlas of the heart

B. Brown

Atlas of the heart

B. Brown

The emotion to be 'very wary of' is contempt

B. Brown

The emotion to be 'very wary of' is contempt

B. Brown

Anger management

Harvard Medicine Magazine

Anger management

Harvard Medicine Magazine

Mediation and anger

Headspace

Mediation and anger

Headspace

Inside out: Anger

Pixar

Inside out: Anger

Pixar

The anger iceberg

RISE

The anger iceberg

RISE

Are there universal expressions of emotion?

S. Zadeh

Are there universal expressions of emotion?

S. Zadeh

Anger and emotional regulation cards

University of Florida

Anger and emotional regulation cards

University of Florida

Quotes

My tongue will tell the anger of my heart, or else my heart concealing it will break.

W. Shakespeare

My tongue will tell the anger of my heart, or else my heart concealing it will break.

W. Shakespeare

Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured.

M. Twain

Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured.

M. Twain

There are two things a person should never be angry at, what they can help, and what they cannot.

Plato

There are two things a person should never be angry at, what they can help, and what they cannot.

Plato

Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned.

Buddhist text

Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned.

Buddhist text

Anger is a catalyst. Holding on to it will make us exhausted and sick. Internalizing anger will take away our joy and spirit; externalizing anger will make us less effective in our attempts to create change and forge connection. It’s an emotion that we need to transform into something life-giving: courage, love, change, compassion, justice.

B. Brown

Anger is a catalyst. Holding on to it will make us exhausted and sick. Internalizing anger will take away our joy and spirit; externalizing anger will make us less effective in our attempts to create change and forge connection. It’s an emotion that we need to transform into something life-giving: courage, love, change, compassion, justice.

B. Brown