Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, November 14, 1993 TAG: 9311140073
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium
Women do let off steam, but typically at their husbands instead of the person who really angered them. And if they cry when angry, that's normal and healthy, a study concludes.
"It's a physiological cleansing kind of a thing," said Sandra Thomas, director of nursing research at the University of Tennessee. "Whatever way it takes to get rid of the overwhelming emotions is healthy. Keeping it all in is very bad for you."
Thomas performed what researchers called the first large investigation of women's anger, studying 535 women ages 25 to 66.
Previous studies have been based on women in therapy or in laboratory trials that induce anger.
Thomas asked healthy women to recall their anger at everyday situations - when their teen-ager was surly, the boss was yelling, the spouse committed a pet peeve, traffic was bad.
What she found challenges stereotypes that women either don't get angry or think it's socially unacceptable to show it - and filled a whole book entitled "Women and Anger."
Among the findings:
Women frequently get angry but typically stew for less than one hour.
Family members, followed by co-workers, are the most frequent targets of anger. But only about 13 percent of the women would tell co-workers they're angry. Most expressed anger to their husbands - whether they were angry with them or someone else.
The younger the woman, the more likely she was to get angry and express it. Women over 55 reported the least anger and were most likely to suppress the feeling. Those in their 40s experienced the most physical symptoms from anger.
Crying was the No. 1 physical reaction to fury.
Married women were less likely to hold in anger than unmarried women. Teachers and nurses were more likely to express anger than homemakers or clerks.
by CNB