Abstract

This study was designed to examine the applicability of the cognitive-behavioral anger control program to find out the duration of relative therapeutic effect between cognitive behavioral anger treatments. Fifty-six subjects participated in this study who went through anger control problems and neurotic proposition among juvenile delinquents in J and B area. Fourteen subjects were assigned to cognitive-relaxation therapeutic group, social skill therapeutic group, integrative group, and waiting list control group respectively. They participated in ten-session group therapy twice a week for five weeks. The pre-test and post-test, and the follow-up test were administered to all the subjects after two months. The participants completed state anger scale, trait anger scale, impulsivity test, and aggression test. Therapeutic program assessment questionnaire was also used to evaluate the content and the construct of therapeutic program Pairwise t-test was used to examine the treatment effect within each therapeutic condition. The analysis of covariance(ANCOVA) was also used to find out the difference between each therapeutic condition. The result of this study are as follows: First, the subjects' level of state anger in cognitive-behavioral anger therapy group was decreased more significantly than that of control group in post-test; Second, the subjects' level of trait anger in cognitive-behavioral anger therapy group was more significantly decreased than that of control group in post-test; Third, the impulse in cognitive-behavioral anger therapy group was decreased more significantly than that of control group in post-test; Fourth, the degree of aggressiveness in cognitive-behavioral anger therapy group was decreased more significantly than that of control group in post-test. Fifth, the state anger and the impulse in cognitive-behavioral anger therapy group were decreased more significantly than those of control group in follow-up test after termination of treatment. However, the trait anger and the degree of aggressiveness didn't show significant differences between pre- and post-treatments; Finally, the therapeutic effects exist in each subject's level of state anger in conditions of cognitive-behavioral group therapy but, the therapeutic difference didn't appear between the therapeutic conditions.