Anger is an unpleasant emotion that most people want to get rid of. Some anger management activities focus on decreasing arousal (e.g., deep breathing, mindfulness, meditation), whereas others focus on increasing arousal (e.g., hitting a bag, jogging, cycling). This meta-analytic review, based on 154 studies including 184 independent samples involving 10,189 participants, tested the effectiveness of both types of activities. The results indicated that arousal-decreasing activities decreased anger and aggression ( = −0.63, [−0.82, −0.43]), and the results were robust. Effects were stable over time for participants of different genders, races, ages, and cultures. Arousal-decreasing activities were effective in students and non-students, in criminal offenders and non-offenders, and in individuals with and without intellectual disabilities. Arousal-decreasing activities were effective regardless of how they were delivered (e.g., digital platforms, researchers, therapists), in both group and individual sessions, and in both field and laboratory settings. In contrast, arousal-increasing activities were ineffective overall ( = −0.02, [−0.13, 0.09]) and were heterogenous and complex. These findings do not support the ideas that venting anger or going for a run are effective anger management activities. A more effective approach for managing anger is “turning down the heat” or calming down by engaging in activities that decrease arousal.

中文翻译：

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对增加或减少兴奋的愤怒管理活动的元分析回顾：什么会助长或平息愤怒？

愤怒是一种令人不愉快的情绪，大多数人都想摆脱它。一些愤怒管理活动侧重于减少兴奋（例如，深呼吸、正念、冥想），而其他活动则侧重于增加兴奋（例如，打沙包、慢跑、骑自行车）。这项荟萃分析审查基于 154 项研究，包括 184 个独立样本，涉及 10,189 名参与者，测试了两种类型活动的有效性。结果表明，减少兴奋的活动会减少愤怒和攻击性（= -0.63，[-0.82，-0.43]），而且结果是稳健的。对于不同性别、种族、年龄和文化的参与者来说，随着时间的推移，效果是稳定的。降低兴奋度的活动对学生和非学生、刑事犯罪者和非犯罪者、智力障碍者和非智力障碍者均有效。无论如何进行（例如，数字平台、研究人员、治疗师），无论是在小组还是个人会议中，以及在现场和实验室环境中，降低兴奋的活动都是有效的。相比之下，提高兴奋度的活动总体上是无效的（= -0.02，[-0.13，0.09]），并且是异质且复杂的。这些发现并不支持发泄愤怒或跑步是有效的愤怒管理活动的观点。控制愤怒的更有效方法是“降温”或通过参与减少兴奋的活动来平静下来。