Why do we get angry? D. Indumathi, Chennai All of us have been angry at some time in our lives. All of us understand what it means to be angry, although the emotions may be difficult to define. Some people say they feel they "are boiling up", some feel pressure on their stomach or chest, some people feel short of breath while others breathe deeply. Deep anger leaves people drained, tired, often with a head-ache. Some want to lash out in anger and hurt others and make others feel pain and anger as well. What goes on in our brains when we are angry? Neuro-scientist J Blair defines anger as “a response to a perceived threat to oneself or to another. It is a response to frustration” In other words, the ultimate expression of anger is to react aggressively--this is called reactive aggression. Examples of reactive aggression include yelling, fighting or undermining someone who is a perceived threat. The parts of our brain that process the stimulus and give rise to reactive aggression or anger, are the amygdala, hypothalamus and the periaqueductal gray (called dPAG). Together they make up a part of the "brain aversion system". Aversion means a strong dislike or disinclination for something. These centres in the brain act together to produce different aspects of anger, such as changed behaviour, triggering of stress-related conditions such as tightnes in the chest, stomach, etc. BOX on The Brain Defence System There are many lobes in the brain. Each has different functions. The frontal lobe is important for control of movement. The parietal lobe processes information about taste, touch, and movement. The occipital lobe is responsible for vision. The temporal lobe processes memories, and merges them with sensations of taste, sound, sight and touch. The amygdala is made up of two almond shaped clusters of nerves located inside the temporal lobes of the brain. They are known to be involved with memory, decision making and emotional responses. The hypothalamus is located below the amygdala and is much smaller. Its most important function is to link the nervous system to the endocrine system through the pituitary gland. The periaqueductal gray is the primary pain center of the brain. It can produce enkephalin which suppresses pain. END OF BOX The frontal cortex is also important for the regulation of anger and the basic threat response. Different parts of the frontal lobe have been found to decrease amygdala activity which could have implications with emotional suppression. It was also found that various frontal regions are directly involved with the anger response. The emotion of anger has been found to be associated with increased activity in the frontal lobes. Frustration and anger Blair also goes into how frustration and anger work together. Frustration occurs when an individual continues to do an action in the expectation of a reward, but they don’t receive the reward. If you have studied hard and put in a lot of effort but you do not get the expected marks, you will become frustrated. If this continues to happen (especially because the teacher was not fair, or circumstances outside your control), your reaction may turn from frustration to anger. Frustration can also occur when someone else does something unexpected that is unwanted. For example, if your friends tease you about something once or twice, you can laugh with them. But if it occurs repeatedly, the frustration could eventually turn into anger. Anger and body defence mechanisms Our brain is on high alert while listening to voices. For instance, we respond much faster when someone is shouting than when we hear normal or happy voices. This is because we are programmed to identify threats. A raised voice may be the signal for a threat to which the body needs to react, and hence the brain focusses on it. Sight and hearing are the two senses that allow human beings to detect threatening situations. Although sight is critical, it does not allow for a 360-degree coverage of the surrounding space – unlike hearing. In an experiment with 35 participants, each participant heard two sounds simultaneously: either both were neutral voices, or one neutral and one angry voice, or one neutral and one happy voice. When they perceived anger or joy, they had to respond by pressing a key on a keyboard as accurately and quickly as possible. The researchers then measured the intensity well as the duration of brain activity. The researchers measured a marker called N2ac. They found that when the brain perceived an emotional sound, N2ac activity was triggered after 200 milliseconds. However, when it perceived anger, the N2ac was more intense and lasted longer. This did not happen when happy voices were heard. Why does this happen? Anger can signal a potential threat, which is why the brain analyzes these kinds of stimuli for a longer time. These extra milliseconds of attention are crucial to accurately interpret the input and decide whether there is a threat. How to handle anger Anger is never a pleasant experience and there should be ways to reduce it or manage it. Some people try to suppress their anger, but research has shown that this may not be the best option. Anger suppression leads to decreased positive emotions without decreasing negative emotional experience”. Physically, it can lead to isolation and physical symptoms such as increased blood pressure. A better way to handle angle is through distraction. If you distract yourself from what is frustrating you and focus on something else, your brain will have a hard time latching on to what is frustrating you. Read a book, watch a movie, go out and exercise. Do something that makes you feel better and takes all your attention. The second method of dealing with anger is reappraisal. This is to be done when you are being roused to anger. For instance, your parent or teacher is shouting at you. Your first reaction may be anger; but when you reappraise the situation, you might understand why the person is shouting at you, and you will feel sympathy for them and this will reduce your own anger. Changing your beliefs about the situation can even change the emotion you feel from anger to something else. Sources: Nicolas Burra – University of Geneva ; https://sites.tufts.edu/neuroscienceofanger/2018/12/04/the-neuroscience-of-anger/