Anger and Instruction. As Terman [(20)] has pointed out, the emotions employed in the act of instruction need a systematic investigation. The emotions brought into play in school control, as incentive to work, emotional reactions which retard, and those which accelerate learning and efficient work in classes, these are little known scientifically.
Anger, or, perhaps, better potentialities of anger in both teacher and pupils, is impulsively used in the role of teaching. Skill in using this emotion aright is part of the teacher’s stock in trade. Pugnacity in the form of rivalry is a common device.
Individual Differences. First, there is the problem of individual differences in the emotional life of students; and the teacher, too, for that matter. With some, the dominant emotion is fear and anxiety. The material of the present study shows a wide variation in the type and character of emotional reactions of the subjects studied in which anger is one of the most frequently occurring emotions. This difference is illustrated by the following summary from three subjects: With J., anger predominates over fear; he knows but little of the latter emotion. Anger usually occurs from a fore-period of lowered self-feeling, the feeling intensity of the fore-period is not strong. The reactive stage of the anger does not reach a high degree of excitement. With him, anger usually disappears into indifference and unpleasantness, leaving tendencies of passive dislike. He observed no cases of anger at injustice or unfairness except when the latter sentiments referred to himself. His anger for the most part is an unsuccessful experience and is unpleasant. He consequently tries to avoid getting angry and has relatively few emotions. The after-period of his anger tends to be a little morbid, lacking any strongly marked disposition which is the source of tendencies to do more work. Subject G. has anger as a dominant emotion over fear. He scarcely knows anger which arises from a fore-period of humiliation except anger at himself when he has been inefficient. He does not hold resentments against persons but against situations and principles. Anger is usually unpleasant except a mild after-period of relief. With him, anger is a means of throwing off superfluous feelings of irritation and serves but little the purpose of work, except to increase volitional action for the moment. His anger often refers to himself. Anger at unfairness tends to refer to the principle rather than to the person. The emotion occurs more frequently when he is unwell. It is rather slow to appear, by a gradual accumulation, till the point of anger is reached; the emotion does not attain a high degree of excitement. With subject C. the character and type of anger reaction is in marked contrast to the two subjects mentioned above. He knows but little of fear except in extreme situations. His anger nearly all springs from a fore-period of humiliation and is often intense in its most active stage. For a time during the most intense stage of the emotion, he almost loses the sense of justice; but as the emotion begins to die down, he has a habit of excusing the offender and looking at his side of the question. His anger is frequently followed by pity, remorse, shame and fear. The emotion is both pleasant and unpleasant. The disappearance is usually unpleasant and leaves a wealth of affective tendencies and mental attitudes which are later a source of both pleasant and unpleasant feelings. Anger is one of the greatest stimuli he has to do work. He will work for days preparing some subject in which he has had opposition that excited his resentment in order to even up with the offender, and takes extreme delight in making his point. His tendency to anger is greater when feeling well pleased with himself. The residuum of his emotion involves attitudes of determination and idealization which plays an important role in his ambition in general.
The description above will suffice to show the problem in individual differences in emotional life. With some subjects fear is the ruling passion. Subjects A. and B. have almost an even proportion of fear and anger during the period of observation. However these instances represent adult persons. How far the habitual emotional reactions are determined by training and instruction, is an important question. It is highly probable that the character of training in childhood and early adolescence plays a leading part. Subject C. above was an only child and took considerable license, almost getting beyond the control of his parents at an early age. J. reports that at early adolescence, anger was much more frequent and intense than at present. He believes that an early philosophical notion that intelligence should dominate the emotions, had an influence in establishing his present emotional habits. G. was early taught that it was sinful to get angry, an idea which he accepted at the time. His anger rarely refers to persons but vents on objects, principles and situations involved. He has relatively few emotions of anger. He believes that his early religious training was of importance in moulding the habitual reactions which he now assumes when angry. Such material as we have makes it entirely probable that a large part of the habitual mental reactions assumed in anger is the result of training. It may be said further that when instruction involves affairs of emotional life, individual difference become a still more pressing problem than when intelligence is the criterion.
Other inferences of the role of anger in the act of instruction are suggested from the present study. If the teacher himself does not possess the ability of well defined resentment against an infringement of fairness, advantage of this defect may be taken by the alert pupil unless there is compensation for it in another direction as by the principle of co-operation, by love or pride appealed to. Cooley however puts the matter a little too strongly when he says, “No teacher can maintain discipline unless his scholars feel that in some manner he will resent a breach of it.” (Human Nature and the Social Order [(4)], Page 244.) The method of school control itself refers to some extent to the individual emotional life of the teacher, as well as pupil.
When anger enters into the role of discipline, of the three types already discussed, that which springs from the sentiment of justice is most efficient in instruction. Anger which arises from irritable feelings, from its nature becomes a dangerous emotion to be used in discipline. Emotion of this type develops by a cumulative process till the point of anger has been reached. It too readily ignores justice and is easily transferred from the real offender and may finally break out against an innocent party who may have unwittingly touched off the feelings which have been accumulated by previous stimuli, consequently anger of this type which is so frequently displayed in school rooms usually defeats the ends of discipline. Anger with a fore-period of lowered self-feeling because of the personal element entering into this type of anger and the tendency to ignore justice can evidently be resorted to but sparingly in school control unless it also involves the sense of justice.
Another point the teacher has to take into account is that from his position, if he is held in respect, the anger he excites in the student will usually be preceded by humiliation and, if he has been unfair, it will be intensified by the sense of offended fairness. Anger of this type is the one most frequently followed by an emotional disposition against the offender. It is the residuum of unsuccessfully expressed anger of this type which becomes a disturbing element in school control with the student who is irascibly inclined. The wise teacher who understands the individual emotional life of the pupil and the nature of the after-period of anger, will skillfully remove the morbid residuum and ally the resentful pupil on his side. Dislike following anger, is skillfully removed, will frequently increase the friendship of the offender more than before the offense. This principle of compensation in the after-period is thus to be utilized in discipline. It may be a good plan deliberately to bring a moody pupil to the point of anger and let him vent his wrath. Any punishment in discipline has the possibilities of being dangerous to school control, especially with the student of pugnacious disposition, if the justice of the punishment cannot be recognized by the offending pupil. Evidently a mistake in control is not to recognize the individual differences in emotional life and to attempt to use the discipline of fear with an irascible boy who knows no fear. Anger, disappearing unsuccessfully, may leave a morbid residuum which completely disqualifies the student for efficient learning, consequently when it exists, it is the business of the educator to remove the morbidity, transform it into work or to have the pupil transferred; for it may be as serious a hindrance to learning as adenoids or defective sense organs.
There is every reason to believe that a large part of the mental reactions to anger is individually acquired habits, consequently successful and satisfactory reactions are a matter of training. Potentialities of anger may actually be taught indirectly by building up the sentiments and mental disposition from which anger arises. Whatever will increase ideals and new desires, achievements in school which allow a better opinion of self and build up the sentiment of self-regard, of fairness and justice, are at work at the very root of anger consciousness. The study of the mental situation from which anger arises allows every reason to believe that when there is a lack of potentialities to anger, it may be built up in this indirect manner. The student who lacks good healthy resentment when the proper stimulus is at hand evidently is weak in the sentiment of self-regard, desire to achieve, or sense of fairness.
Whatever exercises will excite the pugnacious instinct, if done satisfactorily may involve a training in emotional habits. Habits of good fighting in work and play, the give and take in debate, class discussion, the witty retort, boxing, the team games if carried on aright, afford good exercise for the emotions. To acquire good habits of behavior when under fire, to fight clean and to the finishing point, to take defeat in a sportsman-like manner, are valuable acquisitions educationally whether they are acquired in athletics or the rivalry of intellectual work. On the other hand, athletics and mental contests may be carried on under conditions of emotional reaction, which defeat the aim of healthy emotional habits and consequently lack their better educational significance.