Relationship between Anger Level and Anger-Expression Mode: Age group comparison

Generally, anger expression mode is thought to develop as people grow older. This study examined whether anger expression mode is associated with age and trait anger level. The results were then compared to identify the differences between age groups. 453 students from Elementary School(ES), Middle School(MS), High School(HS) and University(U))were surveyed using the State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory. Frequency analyses and MANOVA were used to compare the groups. There were no significant differences of anger expression mode between age groups in high level-anger group and low level-anger group. But in moderate-anger group, it was found that there were more frequencies of anger-control. Also, it was found as the age of groups get older the more frequencies of anger-control appeared. In US, high level-anger group frequencies of anger-control were higher than anger-out and the same as anger-in. The results suggest that the age and trait anger level were related to anger expression mode. It also implies that as the ages increases most people get to use anger-control generally. However, if the anger level is too high or low then this general tendency might not be accompanied by its development. The implications and limitations of this study are discussed, along with directions for future research.