If you're angry, just vent it out? It turns out that we may have been making mistakes all along, and in our daily life and work, we inevitably feel angry and frustrated. At this point, we generally believe that the best way is to vent these negative emotions, rather than keeping them bottled up in our hearts. However, does this traditional idea of venting really have scientific basis? Can venting anger really effectively reduce anger? Or is it just misleading? In 2024, researchers from Ohio State University in the United States published a study in the Journal of Clinical Psychology Review, which pointed out a common misconception about anger: that venting anger is effective. This study suggests that venting anger may make people feel good, but it does not effectively reduce anger. It may even make the situation worse. Why is anger difficult to control? Anger is considered one of the most difficult unpleasant emotions to regulate, due to its complexity and strong impact. From a physiological perspective, anger can quickly trigger the body's "fight or run" response, causing physiological changes such as increased heart rate and blood pressure. This rapid and intense physiological activation state is like a machine that heats up instantly, requiring a process to cool down, so it is difficult to be quickly quelled. In addition, regions of the brain related to emotional regulation, such as the prefrontal cortex, may be highly affected by emotional activation during anger, thereby affecting rational decision-making and emotional regulation abilities. From a psychological and social perspective, anger typically involves deeper emotional experiences and cognitive evaluations. It is often closely linked to personal values, expectations, and beliefs. When these are challenged or threatened, individuals may feel a strong sense of injustice and hurt, thereby exacerbating their anger. Meanwhile, anger often accompanies accusations towards others or the external environment, which may prompt individuals to take impulsive or retaliatory actions driven by anger rather than seeking constructive and rational solutions. The interaction of these cognitive and emotional factors makes anger an emotion that is difficult to regulate and manage on multiple levels. Research has found that venting does not effectively reduce anger. Some psychological theories, especially Freud's psychoanalytic theory, suggest that through the process of "venting," individuals can express these hidden emotions, thereby reducing inner tension and conflict. He likened this process to 'spiritual detoxification' and believed it to be crucial for an individual's mental health. Especially when he compares anger to a kind of pressure or energy that needs to be released in some way when it accumulates to a certain level, similar to the valve of a steam pot needing to be opened to release pressure. Based on this, people believe that venting anger can reduce inner tension and impulsiveness, making individuals feel more relaxed and relieved. But researchers at Ohio State University, after analyzing over 150 studies involving 10189 participants, found that the real way to reduce anger is to lower physiological arousal, in other words, reduce heat. Activities that enhance physiological arousal, such as venting, do not effectively reduce anger. Venting may sound like a good idea, but there is not a shred of scientific evidence to support the theory of venting. ”Brad Bushman, a professor of communication at Ohio State University, co leader and corresponding author of the study, said. The selection and analysis of this study are guided by the dual factor theory of emotions. The dual factor theory of emotions suggests that in emotionally evoked situations, people go through three processes: physiological arousal, searching for environmental clues that can explain the arousal, and using them to label their emotions. Anger, as a highly physiological arousal emotion, also follows this theory in its generation. In other words, the outbreak of anger is highly correlated with two factors: high physiological arousal and unpleasant cognitive labels. In fact, the study found that behaviors that affect arousal levels have a significant impact on anger and aggression: activities that reduce physiological arousal, such as relaxation, meditation, yoga, etc., can effectively reduce anger and aggression; ·Activities that enhance physiological arousal, such as jogging, boxing, and shouting, may exacerbate anger and aggression. This is because when angry emotions strike, our bodies often enter a state of tension, and the sympathetic nervous system becomes abnormally active. As a part of the autonomic nervous system, the sympathetic nervous system is mainly responsible for regulating the body's stress response and motor response. In a state of anger, the sympathetic nervous system releases a large amount of neurotransmitters, such as norepinephrine and adrenaline, which promote physiological reactions such as accelerated heart rate, vasoconstriction, elevated blood pressure, and elevated blood sugar levels. These reactions are in response to potential threats or dangers, enabling us to take swift action. However, if we choose to reduce anger through exercise or venting when we are angry, it may actually increase the level of physiological arousal, which can have the opposite effect. This is because exercise further increases heart rate and breathing rate, making the body more tense and exacerbating feelings of anger. The act of venting emotions, such as shouting or hitting violently, may also trigger stronger physiological reactions, such as increased heart rate and blood pressure, further exacerbating anger and aggression. Cognitive neuroscience research has found that the brain regions activated by physiological pain and emotional pain are highly overlapping. That is to say, the brain often cannot distinguish whether you are breathing faster due to exercise or breathing rapidly due to anger. This may lead to such a misunderstanding: our anger level may originally be only 7, but due to exercise or venting, coupled with physiological arousal, the brain mistakenly believes that our anger level has exceeded 10. On the contrary, reducing physiological arousal activities helps to lower the activity of the sympathetic nervous system and encourage the parasympathetic nervous system to play a greater role in restoring the balance of the body, allowing us to shift from the "fight or flight response" to the "calm and connect response", allowing us to calm down, think carefully, talk, and handle problems more rationally. Too angry, try doing this. Although anger is difficult to control, some techniques may be helpful for people in angry situations. Based on the dual factor theory of emotions and the results of this study, reducing anger can actually be achieved by reducing physiological arousal. There are various methods to reduce physiological arousal, which are similar in principle to breathing adjustments and muscle relief after intense exercise. Here are several effective methods to reduce physiological arousal: 1. Deep breathing. Through deep breathing, we can slow down heart rate and lower blood pressure, thereby reducing the degree of physiological arousal. Deep breathing helps to inhale more oxygen while expelling carbon dioxide from the body, gradually transitioning the body from a tense state to a calm state. Closing your eyes is the simplest, fastest, and most effective way to cut off information input. The generation of anger is due to the perception of provocation, threat, and danger, which enter the brain through our senses and trigger a series of physiological and psychological reactions. When we close our eyes, we close the visual input channel, which is the main channel for information input, thereby reducing the impact of external stimuli on the brain. This helps us temporarily get rid of stimuli that may trigger anger, providing a buffer time for our emotional regulation. While closing our eyes, we can try relaxation activities such as deep breathing, muscle relaxation, or meditation, which can help lower our physiological arousal levels and alleviate tension and anxiety. By reducing the interference of external information and relaxing ourselves, we can better control our emotions and avoid the outbreak of anger. In fact, simply counting from 1 to 10 can effectively reduce physiological arousal and alleviate anger. This is because counting activities are actually a technique of attentional shift, where when we start counting, our attention is focused on the numbers rather than the emotions of anger or the reasons that trigger it. This shift in attention helps to reduce physiological arousal levels, as our bodies are no longer in a highly tense state. In addition, the counting activity also provides us with a buffer time. During the counting process, we can temporarily stop reacting to angry emotions and give ourselves some time to calmly think. This time window gives us the opportunity to reassess the situation and find more effective coping strategies, rather than relying solely on anger to express ourselves. (Xinhua News Agency) Author | Denovo Science Popularization Team Su Jing, National Second level Psychological Consultant