//Mind and Anger//
Following on from my last post about the brain and language, I thought it would be interesting to dig into other areas of neuroscience that touch on certain behaviours or emotions. I find these topics in science fascinating and it helps me to digest and simplify certain ideas and concepts to share with you all. Today I wanted to look at anger, something that most will have felt in a lifetime. In fact, I would be highly surprised if a person was to inform me that they have never felt anger, but this is quite possibly true. Anger is often related to forms of aggression but it doesn’t mean that anyone who feels emotions of anger will exert aggression to another party.
//Emotions Inside//
Anger is a product of certain experiences that induce frustration, fear and other negative emotions that push one into a state of anger. We often see philosophical glances over the concept of clear minded approaches over anger. But researchers believe that anger is also a tool to overcome certain fear and can be used to instil confidence. I suppose this is based on the root cause of the anger and the nature or direction that it tends towards. Perhaps anger is healthy but as with anything, excess levels of anger are something to be aware of. Anger can quickly switch into rage and the psychological effects lead to questionable and perhaps even harmful decision making to the person and those around.
//Anger and Beyond//
Physical changes when anger is felt are very visible. In some cases where a person is red in the face, this is caused by widening of blood vessels and tension in the face. Certain research pieces point to two forms of expressive anger which include both active and passive states. The former sees physical action, perhaps a throwing of furniture or other. The latter, are actions that tend towards tension and passive-aggression. Anger is a controlling emotion that enters the brain first and consumes the rest of the body as nerves react. Research suggests that it is the amygdala, a collection of cells at the bottom of the brain that makes up a core component of the brain’s emotional state (or limbic system) is responsible for regulating anger. It is this part of the brain that is responsible for triggering emotional response. There are conditions that effect its function and amygdala hijack is known to be where a person’s reaction is magnitudes higher than the actual emotional trigger. An example may be extreme rage for a smaller matter.
https://www.healthline.com/health/stress/amygdala-hijack
https://www.khanacademy.org/test-prep/mcat/processing-the-environment/emotion/v/emotions-limbic-system