Playing anger management games is one method used to teach people how to understand and deal with their feelings of anger.
Feelings of Anger
Everyone experiences feelings of anger and those feelings are perfectly normal and healthy. However, when people are not able to express their anger in an appropriate way it builds until it erupts in an uncontrollable aggressive outburst of rage. These angry outbursts often cause harm to the person with the anger problem as well as to those around them.
Anger management courses focus on helping people learn how to:
- Manage their feelings of anger
- Identify and control their anger triggers
- Express their anger in ways that are appropriate and healthy
Using Games as an Anger Management Technique
The following are several reasons why game playing is used as a method of teaching anger management.
- Players learn a different way of thinking about controlling their angry feelings
- Players realize they cannot control every aspect of their lives.
- Players are taught how to deal with things in an appropriate manner instead of allowing their feelings of anger and frustration take over.
Anger Management Games
Anger management games are generally played under the guidance of a counselor during an anger management or stress management course.
Luck of the Roll
Luck of the Roll is a game designed to help players understand their responses and reactions to situations that are unfavorable to them and reinforce the fact that they cannot control every situation in their lives. The games can be played with as few as three people or as many as fifteen people.
- Each player takes a turn rolling the dice.
- Each number corresponds to a particular prize or to no prize at all
- Players gather prizes during the game play. The number of prizes players receive during the game will vary.
During the game the pattern of each player's behavior is carefully observed and noted by the counselor. After the game is finished, the players and the counselor discuss various aspects of the game. Players share how they felt during the game involving:
- The prizes they won
- The prizes they did not win
- How they thought they handled their feelings of anger during the game
The players and the counselor discuss the reactions that the counselor noted and compare those findings with the perceptions of the players. Players that reacted in a positive manner are praised by the counselor and become good examples and role models to the other members of the group.
Odd or Even
A variation of the game Luck of the Roll is Odd or Even. To play the game, everyone in the group brings in a gift that the others cannot see. It should be either in a bag or wrapped. This game can be played by any number of players.
- Each player draws a number from a container. If the number is odd, that player chooses a gift and opens it. The gift is kept on the table by the player. If the number is even, the player loses his turn and the next person gets a turn drawing a number.
- The game continues until all the gifts have been opened. At this point, the game can end or play can continue with one slight modification and a set time limit.
- If a player draws an odd number, that player can take any opened gift from any of the other players. If an even number is chosen, the player loses his turn and the next player takes his turn.
When the game ends some players will have one gift, others will have multiple gifts and others will not have any at all. Some of the players will have lost the gifts they had previously won.
The purpose of the game is to explore the players' feelings when they drew a number that was not to their benefit. If they experienced feelings of anger, the counselor and the group discusses how the anger was dealt with.
Anger management games are effective tools for learning to understand and express feelings of anger.
