Anger, Aggression, and Interventions for Interpersonal Violence

Book excerpt: Interpersonal violence has many names depending on the context in which it occurs: domestic violence, child abuse, school bullying. Acts of violence are tragic and expensive, costing the government billions of dollars a year. Anger, Aggression, and Interventions for Interpersonal Violence discusses what clinical scientists know about interpersonal violence and what mental health practitioners can do about it, seeking to advance the way professionals conceptualize interventions for violent clients. Editors Timothy A. Cavell and Kenya T. Malcolm focus primarily on violence among family members and those in intimate relationships. Organized into four sections, the book strives to answer questions such as: What is the relation between anger and aggression? Does that relation vary across different forms of interpersonal violence? How does the anger-aggression relation affect the outcome of treatment? How does it affect the process of treatment? Is it necessary to treat anger specifically? Are there effective ways to treat recurring anger problems? Written by internationally known researchers, this work combines detailed discussion of interpersonal violence with focused commentaries written by additional experts in the field. The entries in this volume offer an intriguing and up-to-date account of the relation between anger, aggression, and the interventions necessary for interpersonal violence. It is a comprehensive guide for researchers and practitioners interested in the topic.