'Venting' doesn't reduce anger, so psychologists advise patients to do this instead

Anger flares up in traffic jams, board meetings, and kitchen quarrels alike. The rush of heat, the pounding heart, and the urges to shout or slam a door feel almost automatic. Most of us just want lash out and vent, hoping the anger will be gone as fast as it came.

For decades, people have sworn by “getting it out,” whether by screaming into a pillow or pummeling a punching bag. Others swear by the opposite approach: pause, breathe, let it pass.

A new scientific sweep of the evidence puts these rival tactics head-to-head – and crowns a clear winner.

The ‘venting anger’ myth loses steam

After the second paragraph, it’s time to meet the researchers. Communication scholar Brad Bushman at Ohio State University has spent years testing the notion of catharsis.

“Venting anger might sound like a good idea, but it’s actually counterproductive,” he says.

His team, working with postdoctoral fellow Sophie Kjærvik, combed through 154 different studies with more than 10,000 people to sort myth from reality.

Their review shows that activities lowering bodily arousal – deep breathing, mindfulness, meditation, even slow, controlled yoga – consistently push anger levels down.

The setting hardly matters; results hold for solo exercises at home, therapist-guided sessions, and app-based programs.

“Reducing arousal – and actually the physiological aspect of it – is really important,” Kjærvik explains.

What the numbers say

Kjærvik’s meta-analysis, published in Clinical Psychology Review, found that every group studied – college students, retirees, people with intellectual disabilities, and individuals with criminal records – benefited from arousal-decreasing strategies.

In stark contrast, jogging, hitting a bag, or smashing plates in a rage room showed little effect or even nudged anger upward. “To reduce anger, it is better to engage in activities that decrease arousal levels,” Bushman notes.

Meta-analyses of this size are rare in emotion research. By pooling so many participants, the team could spot small but steady patterns that single experiments miss.

The consistency across gender, age, and cultural background signals that calming the body is a universal recipe, not a fad tied to one social-media trend.

Calm beats cardio

Why would a brisk run fail where a quiet breath succeeds? Anger already revs the sympathetic nervous system – the body’s gas pedal. Adding more acceleration simply keeps the engine roaring.

“Certain physical activities that increase arousal may be good for your heart, but they’re definitely not the best way to reduce anger,” Bushman adds.

Yoga offers an intriguing twist. Though poses raise heart rate, the practice embeds steady breathing and focused attention, turning movement into meditation.

“It was really interesting to see that progressive muscle relaxation and relaxation in general might be as effective as approaches such as mindfulness and meditation,” Kjærvik noted.

“And yoga, which can be more arousing than meditation and mindfulness, is still a way of calming and focusing on your breath that has a similar effect in reducing anger.”

Inside the body’s alarm system

Anger sparks a full-body alert: faster heartbeat, higher blood pressure, surging adrenaline. The sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system primes muscles for fight or flight, while its calmer twin – the parasympathetic branch – waits to dial everything back.

Techniques that lengthen exhales or tense and release muscles flip that switch sooner, cooling the system before words or fists fly.

Scientists think this quick reset evolved because it lets social groups resolve conflicts without lasting harm. Lowering arousal gives the prefrontal cortex – our planning center – time to weigh consequences, recall past regrets, and choose words more carefully.

The payoff is fewer broken dishes, lower stress hormones, and relationships that bounce back instead of break.

Reducing anger without venting

Apps offering guided breathing now sit within arm’s reach, many of them free of charge. A simple routine – inhale for four counts, exhale for six – can drop heart rate within a minute.

Two cycles of progressive muscle relaxation ease shoulder knots that broadcast irritability.

A five-minute mindfulness session on YouTube can do the same job as a longer appointment when time is tight.

“It’s really a battle because angry people want to vent, but our research shows that any good feeling we get from venting actually reinforces aggression,” Bushman says.

For situations demanding movement, try a slow walk around the block. Keep the pace easy enough to hold a steady conversation. Pair it with attention to your surroundings – the hum of cicadas, the scent of fresh-cut grass.

Gentle motion helps metabolize stress hormones without driving arousal higher, and nature’s small details pull focus away from rumination.

Why does any of this matter?

Unchecked anger strains marriages, work teams, and the cardiovascular system. Over months, it can hardwire aggressive habits.

The new review shows there’s nothing inevitable about that spiral; swapping venting for calming returns control to the driver’s seat.

Because most interventions cost little or nothing, workplaces, prisons, and schools can roll them out without red tape. Even a coach’s whistle can cue athletes to pause for three slow breaths before play resumes.

Parents can apply the same thinking at home. Instead of sending a child to “go punch a pillow,” suggest three balloon-slow breaths, a sip of water, and a quiet corner until color fades from their cheeks.

Modeling the strategy yourself teaches by example and keeps the living room peaceful.

Cooling down trumps blowing up. Evidence from more than 10,000 volunteers says so, and the message holds whether you are nine or ninety.

So next time fury rises, skip the punching bag and breathe. Your heart – and everyone within earshot – will thank you.

The full study was published in the journal Clinical Psychology Review.

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