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Articles, Opinions, and News

As a new feature, we will bring you articles, opinions, and news dealing with many aspects of anger, anger management, and business issues related to the practice, development, and management of anger management organizations. If you have something to share on any of the above topics, please submit your article to George Anderson. We will run articles we believe are helpful and suitable for this site.

The American Association of Anger Management Providers is not committed to any one model of anger management intervention. We strongly believe that the current state of our knowledge is limited and, therefore, we encourage our providers to expose their models to evidence based research when feasible.

If you would like to publish or redistribute any article, please contact George Anderson. All articles need their author's permission for reproduction.

Executive Coaching/Anger Management: Emotional Intelligence II

“Just because a man lacks the use of his eyes doesn’t means he lacks vision.”
– Stevie Wonder

Emotions Are Important. Our emotions are a critical source of information. Our emotions are necessary for us to make decisions. Studies show that when a person has an accident in which those structures of the brain that deal with emotions is damaged the person cannot make even simple decisions. Why? Because the person has lost the capability to feel and thus, evaluate their decision. Social Neuroscience has demonstrated cognition requires emotion in order to complete the transaction of the decision-making process. Without emotion, cognition remains incomplete and unfulfilled.

Our Bodies Talk. Our emotions help us communicate with others. Our facial expressions, for example, can convey a wide range of emotions. If we look sad or hurt, we are letting the other person know that we need their help. If we are verbally skilled we will be able to express more of our emotional needs and thereby have a better chance of filling them. If we are good at listening to the emotional needs of others, we are better able to help them feel understood, important, and cared about. The emotionally intelligent person is able to read, with some accuracy, the feelings conveyed non-verbally by those with whom he or she interacts.

Stress Reduces Our Ability to Feel. As our society has become more pressured and we are constantly overwhelmed by stress, our ability to recognize and respond to our own feelings and those of others is diminished. Overwhelming feelings of stress result in a reduced ability to manage intense feelings and an increase in stress-related disorders. Consequently, there is an increase in road rage, desk rage, air rage, voice-mail rage, verbal and physical aggression, violence against others, substance abuse, and other inappropriate displays of anger.

Emotions Bring People Together. Our emotions are perhaps the greatest potential source of uniting all members of the human race. This is what makes us human and creates the potential for our humanity. Clearly, our various religious, cultural and political institutions have not united us. Far too often, in fact, they have even divided us. Emotions, on the other hand, are universal.

Emotions are Universal. The emotions of…

• Empathy - The ability to understand and share someone else’s feelings.

• Compassion - The ability to care about and give to someone else.

• Cooperation - The ability to work together to achieve a common goal.

• Forgiveness - The ability to pardon someone for a grievance against you or against someone one or
something you care about.

All of these emotions have the potential to unite us as people. Our thoughts may tend to divide us, whereas our emotions, if given the chance, will unite us in our humanity.

Tom Wentz, Ph.D., CAMF
Faculty, Anderson & Anderson®
Trusted Name in Anger Management

Executive Coaching/Anger Management: Emotional Intelligence

“A universal trigger for anger is the sense of being endangered. Endangerment can be signaled not just by an outright physical threat but also, as is more often the case, by a symbolic threat to self-esteem or dignity: being treated unjustly or rudely, being insulted or demeaned, being frustrated in pursuing an important goal.” (Goleman, 1995)

Emotional intelligence is a relatively recent concept, which is related to the ability to understand one’s own feelings and behavior as well as the capacity to sense the feelings and needs of others and to utilize this information in a way that enhances interpersonal relationships. Emotional Intelligence is also the capacity to create positive outcomes in our relationships with others and ourselves. Positive outcomes include joy, optimism, and success in work, school, and life. Increasing emotional intelligence has been correlated with better results in leadership, professional and academic, performance, marriage, friendships, and overall health.

Recognizing as well as understanding our feelings and emotions and then, managing their impact on other people must be practiced to internalize the skills being taught. We believe that it is important to take an interest in people and learn to listen to their views, problems and concerns. As previously learned in The Practice of Control, listening is important in communication and is a skill that can be learned as well as improved upon.

Emotional intelligence (EI) encompasses four domains:

   1. Self-Awareness.
   2. Self-Control.
   3. Social-Awareness.
   4. Relationship Management.

Self-awareness facilitates both empathy and self-control. Empathy and self- control combine to provide effective relationship management.

Self Awareness is the Foundation. Without self-awareness, we cannot be aware of our emotions. We cannot manage emotions we are not aware of, so our emotions will tend to be out of control. Out of control emotions impair our ability to experience empathy and to connect with others. When our emotions are out of control, our relationships suffer – we do not have social awareness or the ability for social management.

Emotions Are Our Guidance System. Nature developed our emotions over millions of years of evolution. As a result, our emotions have the potential to serve us today as a guidance system. Our emotions let us know when any natural human need is not being met. For example, when we feel lonely, our need for connection with other people is unmet. When we feel afraid, our need for safety is unmet. When we feel rejected, it is our need for acceptance that is unmet.

Perception Is Everything. The way we appraise (see) our environment at any given time is important in determining how we respond emotionally. If we appraise a situation as a threat, put-down, or an insult, we are more likely to respond with anger and negativity.

Thomas L. Wentz, Ph.D., C.A.M.F.
Faculty, Anderson and Anderson Anger Management

Problem Anger is Ignored

News release:

The Mental Health Foundation today released a report showing problem anger is left untackled in the UK, despite widespread concern about aggression, family breakdown and physical and mental health problems linked with anger.

The Boiling Point report says chronic and intense anger has been linked with heart disease, cancer, stroke, colds and flu as well as depression, self-harm and substance misuse. Higher levels of anger are related to lower levels of social support and higher stress levels. Anger is more likely to have a negative effect on relationships than any other emotion.

Problem anger goes largely untackled unless someone commits an aggressive criminal act, when a court may refer them to anger management training. The charity says we are intervening too late and could save many lives from being damaged if we tackled it earlier.

The report records interviews with GPs, psychologists and providers of anger management courses and therapies as well as a public attitude survey. A literature review carried out for the report suggests anger studies and interventions for problem anger are in their infancy.

Anger is a vital emotion, and essential to our survival, but it can become entrenched in everyday life for some people, interfering with their thinking, feeling and behaviour and creating misery for themselves and others.

A public attitude survey carried out for the report shows widespread concern. Almost two thirds (64 percent) of participants in a YouGov* survey of just under 2,000 adults say that people in general are getting angrier. According to the poll almost a third of us (32 percent) have a close friend or family member who has trouble controlling their anger. More than a quarter (28 percent) of us worry about how angry we sometimes feel; and one in five (20 percent) of us say we have ended a relationship or friendship with someone because of how they behaved when angry.

Polling also found strong public support for tackling problem anger – 84 percent of us believe that people should be encouraged to seek help if they have problems with anger. But 58 percent wouldn’t know where to go.

Dr Andrew McCulloch, Chief Executive of the Mental Health Foundation said:

“In a society where people can get help for depression and anxiety, panic, phobia, eating disorders and a range of other psychological and emotional problems, it seems extraordinary that we are left to fend for ourselves when it comes to an emotion as powerful as anger. We need to be able to recognise when anger is damaging our lives, ask for help and receive it.

In the media and in mainstream life we hear a lot about road rage and many other types of rage. Our polling shows that the general public understands what’s going on. But as a society we have yet to tackle the issue. It is the elephant in the room in mental health. This is not about excusing bad behaviour, but about helping individuals and communities to take responsibility. Tackling it won’t be simple or straightforward, but the benefits could be enormous.”

The report says that problem anger is not a mental illness in itself but many of the everyday tools used in mental health - such as talking therapies - can be applied to help people cope better with anger. But the area has been neglected by researchers, clinicians and policy makers. Consequently people who might benefit enormously from learning how to manage their anger better are not encouraged to come forward, or when they do, they may be offered little or nothing in the way of useful support.

Boiling Point says that there are already a number of schemes run by public, private and voluntary sector organisations that are targeted at helping people deal with problem anger. But most of these are post-hoc interventions to which people are referred because they have already got into considerable trouble at home, work or with the police and criminal justice system.

Anderson & Anderson Increases Executive Coaching Faculty

The unanticipated demand for executive coaching has necessitated an increase in the Coaching Faculty at Anderson & Anderson. Nancy Anderson, MSW, LCSW and President of Anderson will begin training coaching clients in July, 2008. Nancy will work exclusively at the Brentwood office.

Nancy Anderson

Nancy Anderson is the president of Anderson & Anderson, and the quiet impetus of its success. Nancy earned a Bachelor’s and two Master’s Degrees from UCLA, where she has also been a member of the clinical staff at the Neuropsychiatric Institute. She is licensed in Educational Psychology and Clinical Social Work in the state of California.

Currently, Nancy maintains a clinical psychotherapy practice at Anderson & Anderson and is available for consultation on educational or family issues that can not be addressed by an anger management program. She also works as an educational psychologist for The John Thomas Dye School in Bel Air. Although she is certified in anger management, her primary involvement at Anderson & Anderson has been as the CEO.

John Elder, MA, MFT, CAMF who is a long time Anderson & Anderson Faculty member will begin providing coaching in San Bernardino County and cities in easy commute from Loma Linda, CA.

John Elder, M.A., M.F.T.

Mr. Elder has been a facilitator and Anderson & Anderson Faculty for several years. John is one of the most interesting members of our faculty. He has assisted in writing most of our material and is a regular contributor to our blog and website. John is the author of the Anger Management Pyramid as well as the new meditation relaxation tape which will both be listed on our website very shortly. He is also the co-author of our new publication, “The Practice of Control".

Since the new JCHAO standards for “disruptive physicians” were imposed on all Health Care Organizations in April, 2008, Anderson & Anderson, Vanderbilt University Department of Psychiatry and the PACE Program at the University of California at San Diego have emerged as the principal providers of Executive Coaching/Anger Management for Physicians in the nation. Anderson & Anderson is the only nationally recognized provider to use a structured, non-psychiatric assessment tool for mandated and self referred physicians.

George Anderson, MSW, BCD, CAMF, CEAP
Diplomate, American Association of Anger Management Providers
Anderson & Anderson®, The Trusted Name in Anger Management
http://www.andersonservices.com/
http://www.aaamp.org
http://www.linkedin.com/in/geoanderson
www.anger-management-resources.org

The Anderson & Anderson® Anger Management Court Providers List for Los Angeles County

Anderson & Anderson, the leading provider of anger management classes, training, and executive coaching services, will be publishing and sending the updated Los Angeles County Court Provider’s List to all court houses in L.A. County by July 1st. This list will be in effect from July 1st until December 31st, and another list will be published for 2009.

Each provider on the list has been trained by Anderson & Anderson to help clients address and manage the following five areas: Anger Management, Stress Management, Communication Styles, Emotional Intelligence (Empathy), and Orientation to Change. It is required that all providers on our list purchase a number of materials from Anderson & Anderson, materials that are crucial to the professionalism and structure of the Anderson & Anderson anger management model. Providers, like all professionals who offer counseling or skill-enhancement services, are required to remain current with knowledge and any changes or enhancements that are made for the curriculum. This involves 16 hours of continuing education per year. We will provide specific details for anyone who wants to become certified and listed on our court providers list.

One thing that each provider must keep in mind is that Anderson & Anderson does not guarantee a number of referrals that a provider will receive when listed on the court list. While the courts in L.A. County exclusively refer mandated clients to our list (each mandate will receive a copy of the list), there is no guarantee that a provider will receive phone calls. It is the responsibility of the provider to market his or her services to the general public. We recommend internet marketing as a primary strategy. Anderson & Anderson provides marketing information and advice during our three-day training seminars. In addition, much of this information is included in the Suggested Guide for Anger Management, the facilitator’s guide that is included in both the live trainings and the home study versions. Please call Anderson & Anderson if you have any additional questions.

Rasheed Ahmed
Office Manager
Anderson & Anderson®
The Trusted Name in Anger Management
Ph: 310-207-3591
Fax: 310-207-6234
http://www.andersonservices.com

Styles of Communication in Anger Management

It is important for all of us to remember that there are four styles of communication that each person has at his/her disposal. However, the key to having one’s needs met in a respectful manner depends entirely on which style he/she uses when communicating with others. Let’s take a moment to look at the four styles:

•Passive Communication = The passive communicator avoids direct eye contact, fails to accurately express his or her feelings, and tends to have low self-esteem. The anger is self-directed rather than directed at the source of the anger.

•Passive-Aggressive Communication = The passive-aggressive communicator often sounds passive, but is hostile in his/her manner of speaking. He/she uses sarcasm and other hostile gestures to get a point across. The listener is left without any indication of what the passive-aggressive communicator needs or wants.

•Aggressive Communication = The aggressive communicator invades the space of the listener, speaks in a threatening manner, and may throw objects, glare, or attempt to intimidate the listener. He or she attempts to blame the listener for whatever the source of the disagreement may be.

•Assertive Communication = The assertive communicator speaks in a reasonable tone, establishes eye contact with the listener, uses “I” messages, and clearly states his or her needs, feelings, and requests. He/she invites the listener to work towards a mutually satisfactory resolution of the conflict. This person
consciously influences the listener by his/her own behavior, and demonstrates skills in emotional intelligence.

From these descriptions, you can see which kind of style is crucial for maintaining positive relationships with others. It is important for us to be assertive, especially in circumstances where the listener has done something to incite the anger. The key to getting one’s needs met with resolution is to be the bigger person. Being the bigger person means being Assertive…not aggressive, not passive-aggressive, and definitely not passive.

Anger Management Services for Austin, Texas Mayor

The mayor of Austin, Texas, has to decide between anger management and community service to remove the charge of assault from his record. Mayor Will Wynn acknowledged that sometimes his anger can be a problem. Problem anger does not discriminate. High-profile people are not only subjected to public humiliation and scrutiny, but also, among other things, to moral judgment regarding their ability to uphold their position. For leaders in government, hospitals, or corporations, demonstrating key conflict resolution skills lends to trust and credibility in the public’s eye.

This is an election year. As a community, we need to be able to trust our leaders and peacekeepers. Can they control their own emotions? Do they have the ability to lead with sound reason? Reason is evaded when problem anger arises.

We cannot underscore the importance of key emotional intelligence skills such as empathy, compassion, awareness, and social conscience when resolving conflict in the face of crisis. A leader’s ability to remain grounded and calm is key to successful conflict and anger management.

Trust and credibility are important in leadership roles. These roles are not limited to the government. Leaders are all kinds of decision-makers - managers, executives, physicians, attorneys, and law enforcement, to name a few. These types of positions often are appointed to individuals who have integrity and the ability to guide. Maintaining these roles to the extent they are intended requires exceptional discipline of one’s emotions, understanding of one’s shortcomings, and having the ability to seek guidance when needed.

By Sonia Brill, LCSW, CAMF
http://www.soniabrillconsulting.com

Anger Management and Chemical Dependency Treatment

The Anderson and Anderson model of anger management/emotional intelligence is an assessment based, skills building curriculum and is effectively utilized by a number of treatment facilities throughout the U.S. The Anderson and Anderson model addresses four domains of human emotion and interaction: anger, stress, communication skills, and emotional intelligence. The efficacy of the Anderson and Anderson model is found in a myriad of ways for clients/patients engaged in treatment for alcohol and other drugs.

First, the Anderson and Anderson model recognizes anger as a normal human emotion. Anger is not a mental illness nor is there a diagnosis for anger in the DSM V (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual). As a result, the Anderson and Anderson model utilizes a cognitive-behavioral approach, with structured classes and a client workbook, to address when anger is problematical in a person’s life. Specifically, anger is a problem when it is “too intense, too frequent, too long of duration (including resentments), leads to aggression, and when it destroys personal and professional relationships.”

Secondly, the Anderson and Anderson model also recognizes anger as a “secondary emotion.” Anger arises from a hidden (or denied) primary emotion and the client’s unique and learned belief system. The Anderson and Anderson model sharpens the focus and the folly of a client’s anger to identify the primary emotion and the client’s underlying belief system through practical writing exercises, DVDs, class interaction, and role-playing.

The primary efficacy of the Anderson and Anderson model is found in its direct approach to changing behaviors – immediately! The Anderson and Anderson model is a skills building curriculum that addresses the “what” of angry behavior rather than addressing the psychotherapeutic reasons, or the “why” a client is angry! The success of realizing the capacity, ability, and self-confidence resulting from changing one’s behavior has enormous traction and inertia or “legs” for changing other maladaptive behaviors as discovered by those treatment centers using the Anderson and Anderson model of anger management!

Tom Wentz, Ph.D., C.A.M.F.
Anger Management Facilitator
Anderson & Anderson, A.P.C.

Anger Management/Emotional Intelligence, an Anecdote for a Bad Economy

One of the unexpected consequences of the down swing in the U. S. economy is the forced recognition, on the part of business and industry, of the need to address the stressful impact of the economy on its workforce. When employees are pre-occupied with the cost of gas, mortgages, food, healthcare, education for their off-spring and the potential of lay-offs, the ROI goes down the drain.

Anger, stress, tension and conflict in the workplace, which may have been addressed earlier at lesser cost to all involved, must be approached in a crisis mode. Providers of anger management, executive coaching, conflict management, stress management and Employee Assistance are suddenly being inundated with referrals from H.R. Managers nationwide. It is incumbent on the part of all Anderson & Anderson anger management providers nationwide to make the public aware of services that address workplace anger and stress. Ads should be placed on some or all of the follow sites: www.andersonservices.com, www.aaamp.org,
www.anger-management-resources.org, Google, Yahoo and MSN.

School Violence, Bullying and Gangs: San Francisco Addresses Anger

Anderson & Anderson faculty member, Thomas L. Wentz, Ph.D., C.A.M.F., was one of eight distinguished panelists who offered insights, experiences and partial solutions for San Francisco’s school anger and violence problems at the 5th Annual Public Defender’s Juvenile Justice Summit: “Less Talk, More Action: Solutions for Safe Schools and Safe Streets.”

Watch and listen to Dr. Wentz’s analysis, economically responsible approach, and message of hope for San Francisco’s students.

You can see Dr. Wentz’s panel presentation by following these instructions:

• Click on http://sanfrancisco.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?publish_id=285

• Then Click Video on Demand

• Then Click Additional Programs

• Then scroll down to Public Defender's Juvenile Justice Summit 2008 and click the link

If you have any questions, you may call Anderson & Anderson at 310-207-3591.

Extensive Marketing Strategy Conducted by Anderson & Anderson®

Marketing of the July 2008 Anderson & Anderson® Los Angeles Providers List

The new July 2008 Anderson & Anderson® Anger Management Providers List will be aggressively used as a marketing tool for all anger management providers that utilize our model in Los Angeles County. We update the list every six months by making requested changes (for the providers currently on the list) and adding new providers who have met all of the standards that are necessary for correctly providing and teaching the skills of the curriculum. Anderson & Anderson® will make all necessary changes for the upcoming list by June 16th; then, the process for getting the list distributed to all of the courts by July 1st will commence. Anderson & Anderson® will mail ten copies of this list via priority mail to all criminal courts that handle misdemeanor cases. In addition, Family Law Courts, as well as the Children’s Courts and the Department of Children & Family Services, will be included in this mailing. Each provider on the list will also receive a copy of the list via e-mail.

We request that all providers on this list actively participate in this marketing campaign by doing the following:

• Place a copy of this list on your website

• Include a copy of this list in your marketing to Police Departments, Human Resource
Managers, Attorneys, Probation Departments, Parole and other organizations

• Include a statement on your business cards as well as brochures and flyers referencing your inclusion on this exclusive list.

• Place a simple ad on Google, Yahoo, MSN, Craigslist.com, and topix.net. This will market your website. Also, you would be wise to advertise your site on www.aaamp.com and www.anger-management-resources.org

• Make references to your status as an approved Anderson & Anderson provider.

• Finally, place links from your website to every other provider’s site who is on the list. This gives your organization and all other providers on the Los Angeles List. This gives your organization and all other providers on the Los Angeles List credibility. It increases the ranking of the entire group.

Please contact George Anderson or Rasheed Ahmed in our office for more information or assistance.

What’s New at Anderson & Anderson®

Anger management guru, George Anderson has a new client workbook, “The Practice of Control”, Executive Coaching/Anger Management for Physicians, which will be available for sell on August 1, 2008. This publication was written for use with “disruptive physicians” and those with “boundary issues”. It contains all of the information needed to comply with the new standards of the Joint Commission on The Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO). This is the first and only publication designed exclusively for “disruptive physicians”. All of our executive coaching clients after August 1, 2008 will receive a copy of this new workbook.

Excerpts from this publication will begin appearing on our blogs within the next week at www.andersonservices.com/blog, as well as the Anger Management Forum at www.topix.net. Stay tuned for more information.

Rasheed Ahmed
Office Manager
Anderson & Anderson®
The Trusted Name in Anger Management
Ph: 310-207-3591
Fax: 310-207-6234
http://www.andersonservices.com

Three Days of Anger Management Certification Training

Hosted by George Anderson, BCD, LCSW, CAMF & Thomas L. Wentz, Ph.D., CAMF

August 6th, 7th, & 8th, 2008*
8:30 AM – 5:30 PM
12301 Wilshire Blvd.
Suite 418
Los Angeles, CA 90025
310-207-3591

COST: $500.00 per day includes client workbook, facilitator guide, and certification.
*Those attending all three days will receive a 30% discount on all Anderson & Anderson
DVDs and CD-ROMs purchased on the training days.

Approved for 8 CEU’s by CAADAC (#2n96-341-0805), BBS (#PCE60),
CAADE (#CP40-793-C-1009), TCBAP, and the CA. Board of Corrections

The First day of training will focus on Adolescent Anger Management and will use the Anderson
workbook “Controlling Ourselves” as the text. A demonstration and discussion of the Conover
Assessment Component will be conducted. This one-day training is designed for Nurses, School
Counselors/Psychologists, Substance Abuse Counselors, Case Managers, HR Managers, Clinicians,
Probation Officers, as well as staff from group homes, and agencies serving families and youth.
This curriculum is currently being used in school districts in Los Angeles, Oakland, Sacramento,
Concord and San Diego, as well as school districts in Texas and Louisiana. In addition, probation
departments in Arizona, Kansas, California and Texas use this model.

On the Second day, Adult Anger Management will be examined. A demonstration of the Conover
Assessment will be conducted with a discussion of its usefulness. “Gaining Control of Ourselves,”
in conjunction with experiential exercises and videos, will be used to initiate the participants
to this intervention. Most major corporations have accepted this model for use by H.R. and EAP Managers.

The Third day of Training is Advanced Anger Management. An overview of the adult & adolescent trainings will include discussions on branding, marketing, Emotional Intelligence Training, and the process of capitalizing on your anger management practice. Those who attend all three days will receive a copy of the Motivational Interviewing Component on CD-ROM.

This training is also available on interactive CD’s. Please visit www.AndersonServices.com
for more information.

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