2. Venting
(This is an excerpt from a University Of Metaphysical Sciences course at www.umsonline.org,
please feel free to visit the school website)
Whether beating pillows, using foam bats, or simply yelling and screaming, venting does not diminish anger and aggression. Rather it elevates and escalates it. Every current study disproves the merits of venting and numerous authors (Hightower, 2002; Ellis, 1993; Gaylin, 1995 et.al.) cite the studies involved that prove both its ineffectiveness and its failing. Any cathartic “release” that may occur is the result of physical or emotional fatigue caused by the anger escalation and not of any true healing that helps to reshape behavior and belief patterns that lead to anger problems. While those in therapy or counseling for alternative issues may experience “breakthroughs” of sorts through venting, subjects with anger management issues fail to exhibit any lasting benefit.
It is the satisfying feeling of the release on the part of the patient that often yields real tears and temporary remorse that has mistakenly been accepted as a progressive step. Venting has continued to be used, especially by those not professionally trained in the field of mental health. This, despite the fact that Fessbach, perhaps one of the earliest pioneers in modern anger management research, published findings that pointed out even relatively mild and non-anger challenged subjects would experience an increase in hostile and aggressive behavior if encouraged to pursue such courses. (Kassanove, H. and Fessbach, S. 1963). Venting only reinforces established neural pathways in the brain that are exactly the patterns that anger management counseling is attempting to neutralize.