Effectiveness of anger management program on anger level, problem solving skills, communication skills, and adjustment among school-going adolescents

Shamala Anjanappa; Radhakrishnan Govindan; Manjula Munivenkatappa; Binukumar Bhaskarapillai

doi:10.4103/jehp.jehp_1216_22

Effectiveness of anger management program on anger level, problem solving skills, communication skills, and adjustment among school-going adolescents

J Educ Health Promot. 2023 Mar 31:12:90. doi: 10.4103/jehp.jehp_1216_22. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Shamala Anjanappa¹, Radhakrishnan Govindan², Manjula Munivenkatappa³, Binukumar Bhaskarapillai⁴

Affiliations

¹ College of Nursing, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bangalore, Karnataka, India.
² Department of Nursing, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bangalore, Karnataka, India.
³ Department of Clinical Psychology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bangalore, Karnataka, India.
⁴ Department of Biostatistics, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bangalore, Karnataka, India.

Abstract

Background: Anger is a natural feeling which is essential for survival, however, which can impair functioning if it is excessive. Adolescents need to be equipped with skills to cope with their anger for the promotion of their health and safety. This study aims to examine the effectiveness of anger management program on anger level, problem solving skills, communication skills, and adjustment among school-going adolescents.

Materials and methods: An experimental, pre-test-post-test control group design with a multistage random sampling was adopted to select 128 school-going adolescents aged between 13 and 16 years. Experimental group received six sessions of anger management program, while control group received one session on anger management skill after the completion of post-assessment for both the groups. Sessions included education on anger, ABC analysis of behavior and relaxation training, modifying anger inducing thoughts, problem solving, and communication skills training. Assessment done after the 2 months of anger management program. Data were analyzed through descriptive and inferential statistics.

Results: Study reveals the improvement in the problem solving skills (81.66 ± 4.81), communication skills (82.40 ± 3.82), adjustment (28.35 ± 3.76), and decreased anger level (56.48 ± 4.97). Within the experimental and between the experimental and control group, post-test mean scores differed significantly (P < 0.05).

Conclusion: The results revealed that the anger management program was effective in decreasing anger level and increasing problem solving skills, communication skills, and adjustment among school-going adolescents.

Keywords: Adjustment; adolescent; anger management; communication; problem solving.